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TEACHERS IN A Dublin-based secondary school have asked for plans by the Department of Education to convert the school to a Gaelcholáiste to be put on hold.
The plan was announced to convert Synge Street CBS in Dublin 8 to a Gaelscoil and a co-educational school by the Department of Education in September 2024.
However, teachers were only informed of the decision the day before it was announced publicly.
The Association of Secondary School Teachers (ASTI) is now seeking for the plans to be put on hold and for an urgent meeting with the Department of Education over the proposal.
They have welcomed the fact the school’s board of management have contacted the Department of Education to tell them that the conversion will not go ahead as planned in 2026.
At an ASTI meeting at the school this morning, teachers working at the school unanimously agreed to issue a statement which said they are deeply concerned about the proposal to convert their school to a Gaelcholáiste in September 2026.
ASTI Deputy General Secretary, Diarmaid de Paor said the organisation is “very concerned that such a major change to a school, and to the terms and conditions of its teachers, should be attempted with little or no consultation”.
The teachers now want the plans to convert the school to be paused until staff have been properly consulted.
The statement from the school’s teachers said: “Despite the monumental impact of such a decision, the staff and other valued members of our school community were not consulted prior to the announcement on September 11th 2024.
“We were informed on September 10th, a day before the school patron, the Edmund Rice Schools Trust (ERST), published the announcement and the Department of Education issued a press release welcoming it.”
They claim they have received “no meaningful communication” from either ERST or the Department of Education on how this change would be implemented or how they would be upskilled to continue teaching at the school.
A survey by the ASTI found that 91% of teaching staff were not in favour of the transition to a Gaelcholáiste.
Conversely, 87% of teaching staff were in favour of a change to a co-educational school (allowing girls).
The teachers said they “fully respect and value” the Irish language and its promotion within education and agree that there is a need for a Gaelcholáiste in the area, but that a transition of the scale proposed should be guided by “transparency, collaboration, and careful consideration of all children’s needs”.
Today’s development comes as a knock to campaigners in Dublin who have been pushing for an additional Irish-language secondary school in the capital.
On Wednesday, school children and their teachers protested outside Leinster House, calling on Education Minister Helen McEntee to deliver the school that was promised last September.
Students from Bunscoil Synge, Gaelscoil Eoin, Gaelscoil Inse Chór, Gaelscoil Lios na nÓg and Scoil Bhríde located in the Dublin 2, 4, 6, and 8 school areas, took part in the protest.
A statement issued by the Department that evening said it remained committed to the establishment of a Gaelcholáiste in the Dublin South City area.
Asked by The Journal yesterday about the plans to convert the school, Minister McEntee said her Department was working closely with all involved.
She said her intention was that the school would be opened in September 2025.
“I don’t see any reason for that not to happen,” she added.
In a statement today, the Gaelcholáiste 2468 campaign said parents and children involved in the campaign for a new gaelscoil are “very worried” about today’s development.
Campaign chairperson and father of four children in Gaelscoil Lios na nÓg, Julian de Spáinn told The Journal:
“We are calling on the Minister to publish a timeline for the Gaelcholáiste and if the Gaelcholáiste is to be located at an alternative site then we need to know this also.
“It is essential to move on this now, to communicate with all stakeholders and to make up for lost time.”
The Department of Education has been contacted for comment.
With reporting from Cormac Fitzgerald
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Customers can already self exclude and need to be 18 to enter a betting shop. A total BAN on the ” virtual product” including all racing ( horses, cars, dogs, bikes, football) and numbers generated games like the bingo and roulette needs to introduced. Most of the major shops in this country are making their huge profit in theses areas of gambling. As a former employee of 15 years ive seen with my own eyes the problems people have with it.
@andrew sutton: much of what you say is true.I do believe that the consultation of people who were in the industry be seriously considered.I somehow doubt that they will consider such consultation feasible.Legislation appears for discussion regularly in the dail that seems to be the product of virtual research,take the HSE as an example…..Let’s ask a lot of administrative people the best way to utilise nurses and junior doctors. We all know how that works out.
You are 100% right Andrew, plus with the self exclude all the responsability is put on the customer and the bookies take none. They pray on the lower class areas, look at the amount of bookies in and around the Henary street area compard to Graffton street. Paddy Power have 8 shop’s within an half mile of the spike .
Why is the national lottery excluded? They made it even more of a mugs game by upping prices and increasing the number of balls this year. Scratch cards need to be included
Absolutely dave , also ” amusement ” arcades , the amount of under 25s losing their proverbials in these places is nauseating .
As a person who likes a bet every couple of weeks think it would be a good idea to get rid of online gambling with credit/visa cards.Let people top up in the betting shops with their customer cards and then use that to log on and bet online if they wish.All they can then bet is whats on their account.We all think alot more about what we spend when we see the money in our hands before its passed over the counter.Far to easy to bet online as it almost doesn’t feel like real money if that makes sense.
Maybe even a national betting card with a limit. You put in you’re code and once you have gone over you’re monthly amount you cant gamble any more.
@Jim: Sounds like a thoroughly Irish solution, we should do the same with alcohol, cigarettes, fast food, luxury goods. Don’t mind that thousands of people do it every day without a problem. Lets screw everyone because of the few that take it too far.
Spot on John
To be fair John, If you’re betting every day then it’s safe to say it is a problem.And it’s more than a few that take it too far.Its too easy to conceal a gambling addiction whereas with drink, cigarettes and drugs the signs are generally obvious.
All it takes is one look at the clientele who attend the bookies on a regular basis to know it’s a losers game. The wealth of Paddy Powers alone should get the message through.
you are a moron if you are judging people by their looks and how regular they attend a bookmakers. having worked in many some years ago and known the clientele personally i can verify there is a wide array of people who frequent these eatablishments.
@Scundered: interesting comment.You should read the article above,it is close to the subject you seem to be commenting on.
That is the point of the comments section….Read article and then express a view.
As an aside ,I doubt very much if you are a stranger to a bookies.There is more than a little latent bitterness in your ‘comment’.
As the saying goes ‘The house always wins.’ If they didn’t, as you rightly point out they wouldn’t be in business long.
The government appears to be dragging out this much needed legislation. Self exclusion has been around for quite a while,5 years or so.Some of the practices employed by the online companies are criminal,almost.They will take a lot of study and I personally do not feel this government is committed to the completion of this legislation in any reasonable time frame. It is a cash cow and tax revenue will always trump social needs regardless of the damage to members of society.
Over 10 years ago, a Fine Gael senator attempted to introduce a Private Members Bill that would have closed off the availability of the Tote at racecourses and dog tracks to under 18′s.
The Bill was supported by Gamblers Anonymous but the Fianna Fáil led Government opposed it.
The same Senator became Leader of the House in the previous administration but chose not to prevail on the Cabinet to change the law.
Under age gambling is illegal in bookies shops and also National Lottery products yet every day youngsters attending horse and dog meetings are entitled to bet courtesy of the State-sanctioned Tote cartel. Go figure.
@Vincent Jennings: In fairness if under 18s are placing bets at race tracks etc its not upto the government to stop them. Parents have to take some responsibility here.
Paddy power will let u bet and bet but as soon as you try to withdraw money it then closes you’re account and then looks for I’d. It should be id first
In 1967 when I was a kid, I placed a bet for my Granny in the local bookies on the Grand National.
It didn’t turn me into a gambler, in fact I don’t think I have ever been into a bookies since.
The Gambling Control Bill in it’s present state is not ready to legislate on .
have your say