Athboy school contract signed by Tanaiste

The board of management of Athboy Community School has welcomed the signing of the contract by the Tanaiste and Minister for Education, Mary Coughlan, for the construction of its new school. The new school is being constructed under a public private partnership (PPP) arrangement and is one of six schools being built in the country in this 'bundle'. It will be constructed to cater for 950 pupils on a greenfield site on the Kells Road and preliminary construction work has already begun. The contract for the building of the six new schools has been signed by Mercantile Partnership for Ireland and it is expected to be completed and ready for use in November 2011. In a statement issued on behalf of the board of management, Fr Patrick O'Connor, PP, the board's chairman, said the staff and students can look forward to using the most up-to-date design and facilities. As well as providing new accommodation, the facilities will be maintained by Macquarie Partnership for 25 years. Bank of Ireland has announced its role as lender to the six-school PPP project. Alongside NIBC Financing NV and the Luxembourg-based European Investment Bank (EIB), Bank Of Ireland provided debt funding totalling €100m for the project, which will be developed by the Mercantile consortium, comprising Macquarie Partnerships for Ireland, Pierse Contracting and John Sisk & Son Ltd. Pierse and Sisk will construct the schools. Food and facilities management provider Sodexo Ireland has announced that it had reached financial close on the second bundle of PPP contracts for the new group of schools schools. Sodexo will be employing staff on-site to look after maintenance, cleaning, waste management, energy management, caretaking, building services, pest control and operate a helpdesk. Meath West Fianna Fail TDs Johnny Brady and Transport Minister Noel Dempsey welcomed the good news for Athboy. "This new school will provide an enhanced learning environment for pupils and teachers alike," Deputy Brady said. "I am delighted that, despite constraints on the public finances, that we are continuing to invest in education. New school buildings benefit the entire community and future students. I am also hopeful that the building of this new school will provide local construction jobs." Minister Dempsey said he had been involved with initial negotiations, which had led to the project becoming a reality. "Athboy Community School deserves to have the best facilities so that students' learning experience can be maximised. I know from my time as a teacher and a Minister for Education just how important this new school will be for the local community," he added.