Westport Catholic and Protestant schools hoping to share new site

Westport Catholic and Protestant schools hoping to share new site


Michael Duffy

THE secular nature of the wider Westport community was emphasised last week when it was revealed that plans are well advanced to allow the town’s biggest Catholic school share the same site with the town’s only Protestant National School.
The plan was discussed in depth at a meeting of Westport Town Council where Mr Frank McCarrick (pictured), a member of the Scoil Phadraig Board of Management, and Stiofan Ó Morain, Principal of the school, addressed the monthly meeting, with a view to getting the council to lobby the Department of Education in relation to the provision of the new school, as soon as possible.
Mr McCarrick explained to the meeting that it was recommended that a 16 teacher school be built on the Newport Road site and as it stood, 2013 was the projected date for the commencement of the building project.
After meeting with the then Minister for Education, Batt O’Keeffe, last year, it had been agreed that the new site could be shared with the Protestant Holy Trinity School on the Newport Road site, which was owned by the Christian Brothers but had now been transferred into the ownership of the Department.
Scoil Phadraig had been leasing their current site on Altamont Street from the Sisters of Mercy for €15,000 a year but after the publication of the Ryan Report this site had now been transferred into the ownership of the Department.
“Basically, we are here to ask the Council to do whatever lobbying they can to make sure work can start as soon as possible. We do not have adequate facilities at present and I know Holy Trinity’s building was criticised in a recent report. We have a free site to build on so we are just waiting on the department approval.”
Principal of Scoil Phadraig, Stiofan Ó Morain, said the schools needed all the help they can get to get the project up and running.
“Of course, Holy Trinity would still retain its own ethos but we feel it would work if we can share the new facilities planned for the 16 teach school building on the Newport Road.”