One education campus needed in Johnstown

With the publication of the draft local area plan for Johnstown now imminent, local councillor Shane Cassells is calling for a cohesive approach to educational facilities in the Johnstown area of Navan, rather than the current "piecemeal" approach. The Fianna Fail councillor has said it is time for the issue of schools to be addressed, adding that the "bluffing game" had gone on for 10 years and it was time for the local area plan to deliver for the people of Johnstown. Navan town councillors and Navan area councillors are due to be briefed on the Johnstown LAP ahead of their monthly meeting on Tuesday, 7th September. Cllr Cassells said: "It is critical that the plan delivers for the people of Johnstown and it is time for the bluffing and spoofing from all sides to stop. We have had 10 years of bluffing from the Department and other agencies and, as a result, the largest residential community in Navan is left crying out for public amenities." He added: "This plan needs to be more than a piece of paper sitting in a planner's office." Cllr Cassells said there are now five schools looking for permanent accommodation - St Stephens NS, where more than 500 children are in temporary accommodation; St Mary's Special School, Ard Rí NS (the new Meath VEC primary school), and the Educate Together School which, he said, is to be rehoused. Cllr Cassells added that a need for a secondary school had been identified in the area and that a private planning application had also been lodged for another primary school with capacity for 960 pupils. He is calling on all parties involved to come together to work on a cohesive plan that addresses the requirements of the identified schools, rather than the "piecemeal" approach he said is happening at the moment. Cllr Cassells said an education campus should be identified in Johnstown for all the schools instead of buying four to five separate sites which is bad value for the taxpayer. "We need to deliver a cohesive plan for education and get the Department to cop on and abandon this piecemeal approach to developing schools. An educational campus needs to be delivered for Johnstown that is big enough to accommodate further expansion, playing fields and public transport needs," said the Navan FF councillor. "We currently have over 500 children in temporary accommodation in Johnstown yet people seem to be oblivious to their requirements. We have thousands of homes and no community facilities or proper open spaces for families to enjoy. The council needs to deliver for these people. If planning permission could be granted for these houses, then there is a huge responsibility in the planning offices of this town to see the facilities a modern town requires delivered. That includes playing pitches for the local soccer club and a community centre in which all local groups can be accommodated," he added.