MIXED MESSAGES LEAVE TIPP SCHOOLS IN CRITICAL CONDITION

Issued : Monday 21 June, 2010

 

Local MEP Alan Kelly has branded the news that Tipperary schools will suffer a staff shortage just as the new semester is due to begin in September as “deeply flawed government strategy”.

Over thirty second level schools in the county that will face a staff shortage when they re-open in September.

 

Six schools have been identified as facing severe problems with staffing levels with Thurles, Templemore, Nenagh, Roscrea, Newport, and Borrisokane, all set to encounter problems with staff numbers.

 

Kelly said “The recruitment moratorium is wrecking havoc with the education system all across Tipperary.

 

It goes against all common logic that in one breath the government can announce long overdue proposals to extend facilities, and at the same time, deny the schools the proper staffing levels to be able to run the schools effectively.

 

The current system the government has applied to our schools is flawed, disjointed and severely impacting on the effectiveness of the schools to educate the students of Tipperary.

 

The phrases ‘staffing shortage’ and ‘recruitment moratorium’ have become bywords for the systematic failure of the current government in dealing with the public sector.

 

The burden placed on teachers across the county is immense without having to deal with the additional pressure of a staffing shortage.”