The Department of Education has been criticised for leaving almost 150 primary school pupils from Tipperary standing on the street for over half an hour.
They had travelled to Dublin to highlight their omission from the DEIS scheme.
The students from Tipperary Town’s five primary schools traveled to Dublin along with teachers and parents representatives to hand in letters highlighting their omission from the DEIS scheme.
The schools had applied for inclusion in the programme which aims to address educational disadvantage.
It was reviewed this year but none of the primary schools in Tipp town were given DEIS status.
Having failed to get anywhere with phone calls or e-mails the schools decided to take their case directly to the powers that be.
However when the group of 140 students arrived at the Department of Education on Marlborough Street yesterday they were met by padlocked gates.
Principal of St Joseph’s National School Louise Tobin was far from happy with how they were treated.
After much debate the group were eventually allowed into the Department grounds but without their banners.
The Education Minister’s private secretary took the letters from the students.
However the schools are still no wiser as to why they failed to secure DEIS status.
Louise Tobin feels they may have ticked all the boxes but one.
In a statement released to Tippfm News, the Department of Education said it was only possible to include the most disadvantaged schools previously outside the programme at this stage, and Tipp town schools were not identified in that bracket.
However, the department say that all five primary schools in the town are scheduled to receive additional Special Educational Needs supports under the new SEN resource allocation model which is being rolled out from September next.
