Vanguard action leaves school little flushed

A VAN LOAD of toilet roll has been donated to a school which was forced to ask pupils to bring their own paper in an effort to save on its scarce resources.

The story of the request to parents at St John’s Girls’ National School in Carrigaline, Co Cork, caught the ears of staff at the factory which makes Kitte nSoft toilet paper in Dublin. The Finglas-based operation of Georgia-Pacific Ireland Ltd dispatched 720 rolls by courier and they arrived at the 540-pupil school yesterday afternoon.

But while the gift will be a help to the school, the publicity surrounding the case could pose further embarrassment for the Government over the extent of the funding cuts to schools. While the capitation grant to primary schools for day to day expenses was increased in the April budget, other grants, such as ones use to buy books and classroom equipment, were abolished.

The school received €102,000 for its running costs this year, under the capitation grant from the Department of Education for non-educational costs.

St John’s NS principal Catherine O’Neill said the letter sent to parents last week, asking their daughters bring in a toilet roll to their class teachers from time to time, was a measure being taken due to cutbacks and to ensure the school’s grants go towards educational needs.

“It was a way of saving money we could maybe put to better use. This year we don’t have any grant for library books, we don’t have money for computers that was promised by the Government,” she said.

“But money that isn’t being provided is still needed to run the school. We’re also trying to save money by reducing our energy costs,” Ms O’Neill told RTÉ Radio 1’s News at One.

She said there had been no negative feedback since the letter was sent out, and that more toilet rolls were brought in yesterday morning after radio coverage of the story.

A spokesperson for the KittenSoft manufacturers said hearing the issue discussed on radio prompted some of the 120 staff to suggest making the donation.

“It’s a small gesture in hard times but hopefully it will be of some help,” a spokesperson for the company said.

The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) said requests like that at St John’s were being forced on schools around the country because cutbacks are making serious under-funding worse this year.

“We have conducted several surveys in recent years showing running costs exceed income by up to a third, any increase in general funding has been wiped out by rising costs,” said INTO general secretary John Carr.