St Mary’s NS, Tallaght should be included in DEIS scheme – Deputy Seán Crowe

Sinn Féin’s Education Spokesperson Seán Crowe has said the refusal of Minister Ruairí Quinn to consider including schools that meet the criteria for inclusion into the DEIS scheme will have profound and far reaching consequences for teachers and pupils alike.

Deputy Crowe recently debated the matter with Minister Quinn where he referred to schools that are struggling to cope in the face of a range of cuts.

“It is extremely unfair,” he continued, “that many schools are being refused entry into DEIS despite meeting all of the criteria for the DEIS programme.

“In my own Dublin South West constituency, St Mary’s NS in Tallaght, has endured significant staffing cuts yet it is still expected to meet the educational needs of children whose families are suffering greatly in the economic downturn. Unfortunately, because the scheme is not open to the school, they are being doubly penalised in respect of the changes introduced in the last budget.

“The Minister seems to have a very blinkered view in how he is approaching this issue and the strategy he is adopting does not reflect the views of school principals, teachers and parents. His refusal to examine schools outside DEIS contradicts the ethos behind the scheme which is about pulling down education barriers, not putting them up. But unfortunately, many schools such as St Mary’s are being excluded from inclusion in the DEIS system that has a proven track record in improving the life chances and educational attainment of pupils.

“The allocation of funding must be carried out in the interests of fairness and the challenges facing schools that are in the frontline in tackling educational disadvantage must be a priority for this Government. If Minister Quinn had carried out a more inclusive review earlier in the year, at least we would know the extent of the problem, which would be helpful when trying to resolve some of the issues.”