Parents' plan to raise €60,000 to employ extra teacher refused by primary school patron
Archdiocese of Dublin
.
Belgrove Infant Girls' School in Clontarf, Dublin 3
, will lose a teacher in September following a drop in enrolments last year.
It means pupils going into first class will be amalgamated from three classes into two for part of the school day, resulting in enlarged class sizes of 34 pupils.
Average primary class sizes nationally are 22.5 pupils, and the Government has pledged to reduce the average to 19 pupils.
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Eamonn Broderick, the parent of a six-year-old child who is due to progress to first class in September, said most parents were willing to fund the appointment of a teacher which they estimated would cost about €60,000 or €600 per family.
'We were confident we would have the money together quickly,' he said. 'This is a relatively affluent area. Earlier this the school was able to raise €40,000 to do up the yard in a week. The school indicated they would need about €60,000 for a 10-month contract, as well as PRSI, insurance, etc.'
However, the school's patron body, the Archdiocese of Dublin, told the principal in recent weeks that the move was not possible on the basis that a 'school cannot appoint a mainstream teacher and pay via private funds', records show.
The school, meanwhile, has told parents that several appeals against the reduction in teacher numbers were unsuccessful and that every effort had been made to make the transition to amalgamated classes as 'smooth as possible'.
It said the arrangement was for one year only, as the school's enrolment figures have since rebounded, and it will regain a teacher in September 2026.
A letter to
Minister for Education Helen McEntee
, signed by 237 parents, says the planned class sizes for first class pupils are 'too large' and increase the potential for 'negative impacts on learning quality and the teaching environment for students'.
The letter states that enlarged classes will also 'further reduce the available special education teaching resources to an unacceptably low level'.
A spokesman for the Department of Education said pupil enrolments on the previous September 30th are the key factor for determining staff resources at schools.
While an appeal by the school had been considered by an independent primary staffing appeals board, it was unsuccessful. The board's decision is final.
'The configuration of classes and the deployment of classroom teachers are done at local school level,' the spokesperson added. 'The department's guidance to schools is that the number of pupils in any class is kept as low as possible, taking all relevant contextual factors into account [eg, classroom accommodation, fluctuating enrolment, etc].'
Parents' representatives met the school principal and chair of the board on June 19th last to express their concerns over the move.
Minutes of the meeting show parents asked the school to provide further communication so all information could be 'properly conveyed' to the wider school community.
However, the school declined and said that they had been advised by Catholic school managers 'not to have a public meeting', according to minutes of a meeting on June 19th last.
Mr Broderick, meanwhile, said many parents were worried that the new arrangement would disrupt and dilute children's education, but felt their concerns were not being listened to by those in authority.
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