The school’s annual soccer league began last week. More than 90 pupils from second to sixth class will participate. Team names have been chosen from the list of teams participating in Spain’s ‘La Liga’. The boys and girls are excited and looking forward to the competition which will run until June and involve 132 fixtures. Details of the league can be accessed here.

The following letter was recently distributed to all parents within the school. The letter was written by the Chairperson of the Parents Association.

I am writing to you in reference to the recent article that was published in the Munster Express on Tuesday 11th of March 2014 that you may have seen. While the context of this article reports largely on Minister Ruairi Quinn’s visit to the newly built secondary school in Tramore “Ard Scoil na Mara”, there is a single line paragraph that has raised some concern with Gaelscoil Philib Barún.

It is suggested that an alternative use for the soon to be vacant Stella Maris School is that it could be offered to a Gaelscoil. This statement has shocked Gael Scoil Philib Barun, simply because we are so far along the road to construction of a permanent building. While the offer of the Stella Maris was investigated last year, it was deemed to be completely unsuitable to the needs of Philib Barun for numerous reasons, some of which include:

• The Stella Maris is an old building that is currently in need of some costly repair to bring back to suitable condition, and being an old building it would constantly need ongoing repair going into the future. The Stella Maris house (originally home to the Gael Scoil) is currently condemned beyond use, yet new occupier would have to assume responsibility for this along with the cost.
• It was built for the purpose of teaching secondary school students. It would therefore require serious modifications to be appropriately used as a primary school and comply with the Department of Education own guidelines on primary schools. It is estimated that the cost of these two issues alone would be of the same region as to build a new school.
• The Stella Maris is not owned by the Department of Education. The building would have to be bought or more likely rented from its owner. This flies in the face of the fact that the land on which the Gael Scoil currently occupies is owned by the Department of Education, and was purchased at the time with the focus to build a permanent building on it. This 30 year journey is now at the tender stage, having spent hundreds of thousands Euros already to get to the tender stage with planning permission approval.

These reasons and more were reported back to the Department of Education last year and we were convinced at the time that the Stella Maris option was a non-runner for the Gaelscoil. However current media reports suggest that this is not the case and that there is an alternative agenda within the Department of Education regarding Gaelscoil Philib Barún quest for a permanent building. We would like parents to be aware of this, particularly when in conversation regarding the Gaelscoil and Stella Maris in the local community.

Yours sincerely,

Marc Blackett

The latest school newsletter (March 2014) is now available on the Newsletters page.

Following the discovery on Thursday of a structural fault in the prefab currently accommodating 6th class, repairs were carried out on Friday. Following an inspection by a competent professional the problem has been adequately dealt with. Muinteoir Ben’s 6th class will return to their room tomorrow Monday.

Ongoing work will continue to ensure that water cannot further ingress. The Board of Management have written to the Department of Education & Skills stating that the deterioration in the building makes our inclusion on a building list imperative.

Parents wishing to enrol children in Junior Infants for next September are being asked to submit applications for enrolment during the month of February. Enrolment forms are available from the school office or alternatively may be downloaded from www.pilibbarun.com. Applications must have a birth certificate attached.

Those who have pre-enrolled must confirm their application in writing by filling out a new form which they will receive by post.

All applications will be processed in March and places will be offered according to procedures outlined in the enrolment policy. If your child’s application falls within criteria outlined in the enrolment policy please indicate this on your application. For example if he/she has a sibling in the school already This policy can be viewed on the website.

Queries about enrolment and education in an all-Irish school can be made to the school office. We will be more than happy to answer any questions.

Planning Permission Granted for New School but Archaeologist to Assess Site

One of the 14 conditions applied last month to the grant of planning permission for Gaelscoil Philib Barún’s new school is that an archaeological impact assessment be carried out by a registered archaeologist. The permission was confirmed this week.

During the construction of the Ring Road in 2001 it appears that a series of small holes identified as ‘miscellaneous excavations’ were uncovered close to the Racecourse Roundabout. The construction of the school will involve excavation of an area close to a feature noted in the Archaeological Survey of Ireland and as such must be preceeded by an assessment of the archaeological impact of such a construction project.

The Design Team will shortly appoint the archaeologist who will undertake this immediately. There will be no delay to the project as a result we are assured.

The addition of Gaelscoil Philib Barún to the DES building list is more pertinent as the funding for the construction of the school cannot be accessed without our inclusion on a building list. The BOM have requested that we be added to the existing 5 year building programme as a matter of urgency.

Details on the monument referred to can be accessed on the Archaeological Survey of Ireland website (using Lookup Monument No.:WA026-083–)

The latest school newsletter (December 2013 and January 2014) is now available on the Newsletters page.

The Parents Association at Gaelscoil Philib Barún wishes to acknowledge the generosity and support of all the local businesses that sponsored our recent School Concerts, including:

• Molloy’s Butchers, Tramore
• Ultan’s Unisex Hair Salon, Waterford
• Banyan Restaurant, Tramore
• Run Amuck, Tramore
• Dooly’s Fish & Chips, Tramore
• Cahill’s Newsagents, Tramore

We would also like to extend our sincere thanks to the wider school community who gave so generously of their time and money in support of this thoroughly enjoyable event. Well done also the teachers and pupils who put on such a delightful show.

The timetable for the school christmas concerts is now available here.

Next month’s school plays will all be held in the school.

Infants to 1st class will be held during the day and 2nd to 6th in the evening from 16th to 19th of Dec. As there will be limited space parents will be asked to attend their own childrens plays only. All pupils will get to see the plays during the day when special performances will be put on for the other classes. A timetable will be available in the December newsletter.