Guidance counsellors provide vital help

RESPONDING to Pamela O’Leary (Letters, Jan 7), she urges parents to speak up before it is too late and Minister Quinn has his way and removes the compulsory allocation of guidance counsellors in schools and colleges around the country.

Having being very involved in my own children’s school as a parent representative I got an intimate perspective of how important guidance counselling was in the overall curriculum. I agree with her and her fellow colleagues that most people do not understand what they do in schools. They are very busy. There are not enough of hours in the day to do the job 25% right and most importantly of all, the number of counsellors in every school should be trebled.

I imagine part of the reason people know so little about what they do is they are so busy and don’t have time for self-promotion. I appeal to the minister to reverse this wrong decision. During my period of involvement with PACCS and NPC, guidance counsellors inspired and impressed me beyond belief. If such a decision is sanctioned by the minister, the effects on students overall welfare will be immediate and devastating for their futures.