Slow progress on St Mary’s Special School criticised

The slow progress in advancing the new building for St Mary’s Special School in Navan has been heavily criticised by Meath West Deputy Shane Cassells.

Information obtained through a parliamentary question shows that the project is still only at an early stage of architectural planning and Deputy Cassells has slammed the progress by the Department of Education stating that “the children in St Mary’s deserve far better than this”.
The previous government had announced a new school building for St Mary’s Special School in late 2015, but information obtained through a parliamentary question show that building projects for seven special schools have yet to get off the ground, despite the last government making a commitment to start construction on them in 2016 and 2017.
Fr Andy Farrell founded St Mary’s in Athlumney in 1977 and in 2000 it relocated to its present site in the old village in Johnstown. The information in response to the Parliamentary Question, asked by Deputy Cassells showed that St Mary’s Special School is still only at an early stage of architectural planning.
If there are no issues outstanding from this stage, the project will be authorised to progress to a Detailed Design Stage, but the slow progress has angered Deputy Cassells.
According to Deputy Cassells children with disabilities in St Mary’s Special School are in desperate need for these new facilities.
“These children deserve only the very best and to have been promised a new school nearly three years ago and find they are still no further on, is a disgrace.
“I am calling on the department and the Government to get their act together and progress this school as soon as possible,” concluded Deputy Cassells.
St Mary's Special School is the fifth largest school of its type in the country and caters for 90 children aged from four to 18 from across Meath who travel to the school in 26 buses each day. There is a staff of 84 including 24 bus escorts, 19 teachers and 36 special needs assistants.