Vetting of staff working with children ‘essential’
The minister will attend a debate on the future of the education system at the annual conference of the National Parents Council (Primary) in Limerick.
Among the key issues for discussion among more than 100 delegates will be the lack of vetting procedures for most people who have contact with children in primary schools.
The Government set up a working group of officials from the gardaí, Departments of Justice, Health and Education in late 2002 to address the issue. Its report on which future policy will be based has only been received by Justice Minister Michael McDowell and Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy in the past month.
The meeting at the parents’ conference is part of the minister’s consultation process on policy which has already involved 17 Your Education System (YES) meetings. Mr Dempsey attended a similar meeting at the annual conference of the Association of Community and Comprehensive Schools last week.
The National Parents Council will also be discussing the need to raise parental involvement at school level.
“We have achieved recognition in the 1998 Education Act and by representation on national bodies, but parents are still being excluded from decision-making on the ground,” said council chief executive Fionnuala Kilfeather.
Delegates will also be calling for a high standard of training of resource teachers and special needs assistants. Other motions seek procedures for the assessment and evaluation of teacher performance, and call on the Government to provide for the compulsory purchase of land for school buildings.
Mr Dempsey’s attendance at the annual conferences of the two second level teacher unions in less than two weeks is still uncertain. His officials met with the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland and Teachers Union of Ireland on Monday to try and agree a format to address delegates.
