merrion street

The Department of Education and Skills had a meeting today with the schools authorities in Tyrrelstown Educate Together National School (ETNS) and St Luke’s National School, Tyrrelstown. 

The impact of the precautionary measures completed yesterday on the smooth running of the schools was discussed. Arising from this, further work is being undertaken over the course of today and tomorrow. 

The Department is working closely with the school authorities to facilitate the reopening of both schools as soon as possible. 

Taking account of the time also necessary to address operational issues, such as traffic management, over the course of today, tomorrow and Wednesday, all parties are now working towards the schools reopening later in the week. The detail will be communicated by the school authorities directly to parents.

Occupancy will initially be at ground floor level only, with other classes being temporarily accommodated off-site.

The Department of Education and Skills has been advised that the implementation of precautionary measures at a total of 22 school buildings remains on schedule for completion this evening.  

Five teams involving over 250 workers have been on site through the weekend to facilitate the reopening of schools.

The implementation of these measures follows the programme of structural assessments conducted on schools constructed by Western Building Systems.  The table beneath sets out the list of schools at which external and/or internal precautionary measures were required.

School principals are being kept fully informed of progress and receive written confirmation as the works are completed.

Arrangements at individual school level are being communicated by the school authorities directly to parents. 

The Department of Education and Skills wishes to provide an update on the programme of structural assessments at schools constructed by Western Building Systems (WBS) and the Department’s response to issues arising.

The Department confirms that initial on-site structural assessments in relation to all 42 schools constructed by Western Building Systems were completed yesterday.

The analysis of the data gathered has continued during the course of today, in consultations between the project managers, structural engineers and Department officials. In some cases, further on-site inspections were also required today. 

The below table confirms the current position in relation to the 42 schools which have been subject to structural assessment. 

The table indicates the outcome of the assessments for a total of 29 schools and it is intended to provide clarity to the remaining schools tomorrow. 

The summary position, on the basis of all assessments completed to date, is:

• 11 schools cleared to open in full without further intervention
• 14 schools enabled to open in full following external intervention in the form of a fence around the building and protective decking 
• 3 schools in which the ground floor will be enabled to open following the implementation of internal engineering solutions and external interventions
• 13 schools subject to ongoing structural assessment and analysis (outcome to be confirmed tomorrow)
• Phase 1 of Ardgillan Community College closed

Minister for Education and Skills, Joe McHugh said:

The outcomes of further structural assessments which we have received today are important in providing clarity to school authorities, students and parents. The advice I have received is that no other building has presented the same severity of structural issues as those identified in Phase 1 of Ardgillan Community College, which was built in 2009.

Contractors have commenced work on site at five schools previously confirmed as requiring internal and/or external interventions. Teams are now mobilising to implement the necessary external interventions at other schools as outlined in the table beneath. The target is to have this work completed in the coming days. 

A later phase of this process will require further investigations and long-term remediation measures, where required.

The Department’s interim accommodation team has been working in close cooperation with the principals of Tyrrelstown ETNS, St Luke’s National School and Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada, Lucan over recent days in order to confirm interim accommodation solutions for the classes which will temporarily be displaced from those schools. Offsite interim accommodation arrangements have now been confirmed in principle and communications will issue from the schools shortly. 

The Department of Education and Skills confirms that onsite work has now commenced on the engineering solutions that will enable the reopening of the ground floors of Tyrrelstown Educate Together National School, St Luke’s National School and Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada, Lucan after the mid-term break.

Work is also commencing at the buildings requiring external intervention only prior to reopening in full, i.e. Scoil Chaitlín Maude in Tallaght and Castlemills Education Centre in Balbriggan. 
Arrangements are in place with a contractor to mobilise in the event of internal and/or external interventions being required in other schools following the completion of structural assessments.

The initial site-based structural assessments are on course to be completed this evening, with detailed analysis by engineers and Department officials, and any necessary follow up examinations, to continue over the course of today and tomorrow.

Speaking today from the Department’s Planning and Building Division in Tullamore, the Minister said:

I am pleased with the progress being made on the programme of initial assessments. I appreciate that parents, pupils and staff are keen to hear results from inspections at schools and the Department is confident that once further analysis is carried out by engineers and consultants we will be in a position to confirm decisions in the next day or two.

The Department is working in close cooperation with the principals of the three schools which will require an element of interim accommodation after the mid-term break, i.e. Tyrrelstown Educate Together National School, St Luke’s National School and Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada, Lucan.

At this point, it is envisaged that all displaced classes in these schools can be accommodated in other school premises. School transport arrangements will be put in place from the existing school buildings in order to minimise disruption to students and their families.

Once interim accommodation arrangements are finalised, they will be communicated via the school authorities to all parents.

The Department of Education and Skills wishes to provide an update on the programme of structural assessments which have been conducted to date on schools constructed by Western Building Systems.

Good progress continues to be made in relation to the programme of structural assessments and the target is to have all the initial assessments concluded by close of business tomorrow, 30 October.

It is expected that the outcome of a number of ongoing assessments will be made known to the Department tomorrow and these will be communicated to the school authorities in the first instance. The initial feedback appears to indicate that this will be positive in many cases but the final analysis has yet to be completed.  

Minister for Education and Skills, Joe McHugh, was in Tullamore today to meet with the Secretary General and officials of the Department’s Planning and Building Division who are managing the response to the current situation, including the ongoing programme of structural assessments, mobilisation of engineering solutions, where required, and contingency planning for interim accommodation. 

Minister McHugh said:

Very good work has been done by the team over the weekend and our target is to have all the initial assessments concluded by tomorrow evening.

A great team effort is being put in by everyone both within the Department and with the engineering teams carrying out the assessments.

Good progress has also been made in putting in place interim accommodation solutions for Tyrrelstown ETNS, St Luke’s National School and Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada in Lucan.  My Department’s team is liaising closely with the relevant School Principals in relation to the practical arrangements. 

Contingency planning is continuing in the event that, following structural assessments, other schools require some classes to be moved off-site.  The Department has received many offers of support and assistance from schools, clubs and community groups in relation to alternative accommodation options, and I would like to express our great appreciation for this support.

The Department of Education and Skills wishes to provide an update on the programme of structural assessments which have been conducted to date on schools constructed by Western Building Systems. 

This follows the updates that were published on Friday 26^th and Saturday 27^th October.

A total of seven structural assessments were undertaken yesterday, 27 October. The outcome of the assessments is as follows:

•  One school, Gaelscoil Thulach na nÓg, Dunboyne can reopen fully after the mid-term break.
•  In relation to five of the schools, engineers on site gathered information which was referred back to their headquarters for further assessment, these assessments remain ongoing at this time.
•  Structural issues were identified at Castlemills Education Centre, Balbriggan which present a risk to the external leaf only and will require intervention in the form of a fence around the building and some protective decking. This will be put in place during the course of the mid-term break.

Opening up works and further assessments are continuing today.  

The Department of Education and Skills wishes to provide an update on the programme of structural assessments which have been conducted to date on schools constructed by Western Building Systems. 

This follows the detailed update provided yesterday in relation to arrangements being put in place for Tyrrelstown ETNS, St Luke’s National School and Ardgillan Community College.

Opening up works at ten further schools took place yesterday, 26 October.  Engineers on site gathered information which was referred back to their headquarters for further assessment.  In the case of four of the ten schools, the assessment remains ongoing at this time.

The outcome of the assessments enable five of the ten schools to reopen fully after the mid-term break.  These schools are as follows:

•  Luttrellstown Community College
•  Gaelscoil Shliabh Rua, Dublin 18
•  Broombridge Educate Together National School
•  Scoil Choilm, Porterstown
•  Scoil Chaitlín Maude, Tallaght

In the case of one of the above schools, Scoil Chaitlín Maude, structural issues were identified which present a risk to the external leaf only and will require intervention in the form of a fence around the school building and some protective decking. This will be put in place during the course of the mid-term break.

The structural assessment of Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada in Lucan identified structural issues which require both external and internal intervention.  Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada is a 16 classroom primary school with a current enrolment of 454 pupils.

An appropriate engineering solution, to be implemented during the mid-term break, will allow the ground floor of this building to reopen after the break. 

The interim accommodation team in the Department of Education and Skills is working with the school principal and patron to put in place an off-site interim accommodation solution for the remaining classes with a view to ensuring that all classes can be accommodated when the school reopens on 5 November. 

Opening up works and further assessments are continuing today.  

The Department of Education and Skills has today been in contact with all schools constructed by Western Building Systems, and which are due to undergo a structural assessment, to confirm the arrangements for that assessment. The assessments are proceeding over the weekend and mid-term break in order to minimise disruption to schools and ensure that they can be completed as quickly as possible. 

The Department’s interim accommodation team has been working intensively over the course of today, in consultation with the school principals, to secure an interim accommodation solution for Tyrrelstown Educate Together National School and St Luke’s National School. 

All principals have been notified of the planned opening up works and will receive further information including practical advice on the nature of the works. 

Minister McHugh added,

Good progress has been made today in ensuring that the students and staff of the affected schools in Tyrrelstown will have an interim accommodation solution by the end of the mid-term break. While we await the outcome of further structural assessments, we would wish to be clear that school buildings will only be closed where it is deemed necessary to do so, and every effort will be made to minimise disruption to students, staff and families.

Site visits at Ardgillan Community College and the schools in Tyrrelstown also took place today, involving Department of Education and Skills officials, structural engineers and representatives of Western Building Systems. This provided Western Building Systems with the opportunity to view the structural issues identified at the three schools. The Department is awaiting a response from Western Building Systems.

The overriding priority of the Department remains the health and safety of the school pupils and staff. 

The list of schools constructed by Western Building Systems is available at the following link: https://www.education.ie/en/School-Design/western-building-systems-information/

Following the closure of a section of Ardgillan Community College and the closure of Tyrrelstown Educate Together National School and St Luke’s National School, the Department of Education and Skills is working to provide every support and advice necessary to other schools which were constructed by Western Building Systems.

A dedicated communications team has been established within the Department which includes focal contact points for Principals. All Principals and patrons have been contacted by phone and email and the Department will continue to keep them fully updated on developments. 

Over the course of today, arrangements were advanced for structural assessments to be carried out on all school buildings constructed by Western Building Systems using a particular construction method (steel frame, timber infill). The Project Manager is arranging for three teams of contractors to undertake the assessments, advancing tomorrow and continuing over the weekend and during mid-term break. Relevant schools will be informed as soon as a time and date has been confirmed for their assessment.

A structural assessment was carried out yesterday and today in Gaelscoil Teach Giúise in Firhouse which was completed earlier this year. While the final analysis has yet to be completed, nothing has arisen from this assessment that would warrant the closure of the school. The school authorities have been fully informed. 

The three buildings affected by closures to date were three storey buildings. Most other schools constructed by Western Building Systems using the same construction method were two or one storey buildings. In some of the schools concerned, Western Building Systems was responsible for constructing one phase of the school rather than the full school building. 

Schools, or parts of schools, will be vacated only where it is considered necessary to do so. In the event that structural issues are identified in other schools, it may also be possible to manage those issues through engineering solutions, without the need to close the building. 

However, where required, the Department will work with the schools to put contingency accommodation arrangements in place. An interim accommodation team has been established in the Department to look at solutions and consultation has already taken place with local authorities and Education and Training Boards (ETBs). 

A meeting between Department officials and Western Building Systems has been scheduled for tomorrow.

The overriding priority of the Department in taking all of the actions outlined is the health and safely of the school pupils and staff. 

Minister McHugh added,

I have asked my officials in conjunction with the project managers to advance the structural assessments as quickly as possible, including over the coming weekend. I want to try and get as many of the assessments as possible completed by the end of next week.

Minister McHugh appealed to local communities to get in touch with their local Principals with any suggestions of interim solutions which can also be passed on to the Department.

At all times the key priority of the Minister and the Department is the safety of pupils and staff.

The Department has published the list of schools constructed by Western Building Systems at the following link: https://www.education.ie/en/School-Design/western-building-systems-information/