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Bua do Choláiste Feirste i gCás Leatroim

26/10/11

(English versions follows.)

D’éirigh le bord gobharnóirí Choláiste Feirste inné [25 Deireadh Fómhair] athbreithniú breithiúnach a fháil in éadan diúltú roinn oideachais Stormont seirbhís thiomnaithe bus a sholáthar don scoil.

Baineann an cás le cinneadh leis an iar-aire oideachais Caitríona Ruane i Meán Fómhair 2010 a shéan scéim phíolóta do dhaltaí ag taisteal chuig an scoil in iarthar Bhéal Feirste gach lá ó Dhún Pádraig.

Gan an tseirbhís, caithfidh mic léinn ag taisteal go Coláiste Feirste ar a laghad dhá bhus a fháil agus timpeall cúig uaire a chaitheamh ar a mbealach go dtí agus ar ais ón scoil, ar mhaithe le freastal ar an iarbhunscoil Ghaeilge amháin sna Sé Chondae.

Faoi láthair tá 2,020 bus tiomnaithe ann ag freastal ar iarbhunscoileanna ar fud na Sé Chondae. Freastalaíonn fiche bus ar an trí choláiste comhtháite i mBéal Feirste agus tá níos mó ná deich mbus ag roinnt scoil aonair.

De bhrí go n-éascófaí fás earnáil an Ghaeloideachais trí bhus a sholáthar do mhic léinn, rinneadh an argóint gurbh ionann an diúltú oiread agus bus amháin a thabhairt do Choláiste Feirste agus leatrom in éadan na scoile agus a ndaltaí.

Tá tionchar ag an diúltú do bhus tiomnaithe a sholáthar ar dhaltaí ina gcónaí i mBéal Feirste freisin. Diúltaíodh fiú pasanna bus do thuismitheoirí i dtuaisceart na cathrach ar an ábhar go mbeadh aistear s’acu níos lú ná an trí mhíle riachtanach dá shiúlfaidís trí Bhótahr na Seanchille leis an scoil a bhaint amach.

I ndiaidh an chinnidh, dúirt leaschathaoirleach Choláiste Feirste Colma McKee raibh sí sásta gur aithníodh cás na scoile ar deireadh, agus nocht sí dóchas gur féidir ceist iompar scoile a réiteach leis an roinn oideachais i ndeireadh na dála.

Tá fáilte roimh bhua Choláiste Feirste ach ar an drochuair is chuid bheag é i streachailt níos mó chun aitheantas ceart a fháil don Ghaeloideachas sna Sé Chondae. An mhí seo caite, dhiúltaigh an t-aire oideachas reatha i Stormot John O’Dowd do mholtaí forbartha do dhá naíscoil i nGleann Ghormlaithe agus i gCaisleán Uidhilín.

Tá Naíscoil Éanna i nGleann Ghormlaithe anois ina hochtú bliain mar aonad deonach agus bhítear ag dúil le haitheantas mar aonad reachtúil, rud a thabharfadh maoiniú géarghátarach chuig an naíscoil, a bhfuil ag feidhmiú ag lánacmhainneacht cheana féin. Geallann foireann na scoile go leanfaidh siad lena bhfeachtas ar son maoiniú cothrom. Tá tacaíocht phobal na Gaeilge ina iomláine tuillte acu agus iad ag ceiliúradh daicheadh bliain den Ghaeloideachas sna Sé Chondae, daichead bliain de streachailt a leanann ar aghaidh inniu.

Victory for Coláiste Feirste in Discrimination Case

The board of governors of Coláiste Feirste succeeded yesterday [October 25] in obtaining a judicial review against the refusal of the Stormont department of education to provide a dedicated bus service to the school.

The case relates to a decision in September 2010 by then-minister Caitríona Ruane to turn down a pilot scheme for pupils travelling to the west Belfast school each day from Downpatrick.

Without the service, students travelling to Coláiste Feirste from outside the city have to get at least two buses and spend up to five hours each day on their way to and from the school, for the sake of attending the only Irish-medium post-primary school in the Six Counties.

There are currently 2,020 dedicated buses serving post-primary schools throughout the Six Counties. Twenty buses serve the three integrated colleges in Belfast and some schools have over ten buses to themselves.

Since the provision of a bus for students would facilitate the growth of the Irish-medium education sector, it was argued that the refusal to grant Coláiste Feirste even a single bus amounted to discrimination against the school and its students.

The refusal to provide a dedicated bus affects pupils living in Belfast as well. Parents in the north of the city were refused even bus passes for their children on the grounds that their journey was less than the required three miles if they walked through the Shankill Road to get to school.

After the decision was made, Coláiste Feirste’s vice-chair Colm McKee said she was pleased that the school’s case had finally been recognised, and expressed hope that the issue of school transport could finally be resolved with the department of education.

The victory for Coláiste Feirste is welcome but unfortunately remains a small part of a larger struggle to achieve proper recognition for Irish-medium education in the Six Counties. Last month, the current Stormont education minister John O’Dowd rejected development proposals for two nursery schools in Glengormley and Castlewellan.

Naíscoil Éanna in Glengormley is now in its eighth year as a voluntary unit and was hoping to be accepted as a statutory unit, which would bring vital funding to the nursery that’s already operating at full capacity. Staff at the school vow to continue their campaign for equal funding. In this they deserve the support of the entire Irish language community as it celebrates 40 years of Irish-medium education in the Six Counties, forty years of struggle that continues today.

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