Significant investment for Coláiste Mhuire in Thurles has been welcomed.
The Department of Education has recognised the growing needs of the secondary school and has approved a base figure of 750 enrolments with an additional 30 rooms.
The co-ed school at Castlemeadows has seen a significant growth in student numbers in recent years.
Local TD Jackie Cahill says it’s welcome progress at a school which is badly in need of investment.
“Its infrastructure has a number of defects – I was in the school on a number of occasions and to see buckets around to collect water (from leaks) really emphasises the need for this investment.
“30 new classrooms along with the possibility of having 750 enrolments is a major development for Coláiste Mhuire in Thurles but the site itself has its problems. The size of the site for this added infrastructure is going to create problems.”
However the Chair of the Board of Management at the school Cllr Micheál Lowry claims the announcement from Deputy Cahill was at odds with an agreement that the ETB would respond to the Department of Education prior to any statements being released.
Cllr Lowry feels proposal to provide additional accommodation on site would not allow the school to grow with the boards preference to have a new school built on a green field site.
“The unfortunate part of this mornings premature announcement (by Deputy Cahill) is that the ETB haven’t officially been afforded an opportunity to respond to the Department before it has come into the public domain. We had agreed that that would be the route forward – unfortunately it didn’t transpire. So the ETB will now issue correspondence back to the Department and set out their position in relation to the future of the school and how we see it progressing.”
