McNulty demands ministerial action on school places

The SDLP MLA said that families, pupils, and staff are facing unacceptable pressures as the local education system struggles to cope with rising pupil numbers and inadequate planning for forecast demand.

Mr McNulty said: “St. Paul’s High School— already educating close to 1,800 pupils, including many with additional needs — is now under severe strain trying to accommodate an uplift in applications that goes 28 places above their normal threshold..

“Parents are increasingly concerned that their children may be forced to travel outside their local area, while teaching staff face ever increasing and unsustainable workloads.

“It is completely unacceptable that we are now facing a crisis in school places at schools like St. Paul’s because the Department of Education have failed to properly plan for the clear increase in birth rates and changing local needs.

“St. Paul’s is a fantastic school at the heart of our community, but it cannot be expected to absorb ever-growing numbers of pupils from outside its catchment without additional support, resources, and investment and by doing so, displacing local children.

“Teachers are already under huge pressure, and parents deserve certainty that their children will be able to access a quality education with their friends in their own community.

“The Department of Education needs to get to grips with this issue and take immediate steps to improve long-term planning, increase capacity, and ensure regionally balanced, fair and equal support for children with special educational needs, and provide access to local schools for local children. “