Pupils told to bring own toilet paper to school

Government cuts have forced a primary school to ask children to bring in their own toilet roll, soap, and hand towels.

The message to parents of pupils at Gaelscoil Chloch na gCoillte in Clonakilty, Co Cork, comes in response to cuts in Department of Education funding of recent years. Principal Carmel Nic Airt said that despite pupil numbers rising to 320, grants for running costs, maintenance, secretarial, and caretaking last year fell almost €25,500 to €101,587.

In an email ahead of classes resuming on Wednesday, parents of pupils from first to sixth classes were told their children needed to bring wash bags.

“This bag must contain a small hand towel, soap, and a roll of toilet paper,” it said.

Ms Nic Airt said a number of schools were doing the same to cope with funding cuts.

“All our different charges are going up. We paid water charges of nearly €500 the other day for Easter to summer. Our heating, lighting, and insurance bills are going up, and we saw that we were flushing away €304 in toilet paper every month.

“We take no pleasure in doing these things, but we have to be prudent in our spending and there are challenges in maintaining standards of service to our children.”

A parent of one child at Gaelscoil Chloch na gCoillte said the request came as a surprise.

“I would have thought toilet roll was a basic thing to expect in this day and age,” said the parent, who did not want to be named.

The capitation grant to primary schools for utility bills and other running costs has been cut by 3.5% this year, to €178 per pupil, in addition to last year’s 5% cut.

“Due to the difficult financial situation this country faces, all areas of public spending are facing reductions and, unfortunately, primary schools are no different,” said a department spokesperson.

“It should be noted that the current capitation rate in primary schools is the same as it was in the 2007/08 school year.”

An Irish National Teachers’ Organisation spokesman said schools were reeling under cutbacks, forcing many to ask parents to shoulder an even greater burden of their children’s education.

“It is no longer about extra books or classroom equipment, it’s now about basic running costs,” he said.