New Building Campaign

Latest news….. latest news…. latest news….
NEWPARK CAN’T WAIT.

Our campaign to pressure Minister Ruairi Quinn TD, through our public representatives, has been going very well, and that’s thanks to all the parents, guardians and supporters who have brought our anger and frustration over the delays to his attention.

We are finalising the next phase of the campaign, which includes a Health and Safety Audit, delivery of student letters to the Minister, and an online video showing the condition of the buildings.

In the meantime, there are a number of things you can do.

  1. IF YOU RECEIVED A LETTER OR EMAIL, FROM YOUR PUBLIC REPRESENTATIVE, please do reply (using points in Briefing Note 2), and say you don’t accept that your child has to be educated in sub-standard conditions any more, and want to know what your public representative is going to do about it?
  2. IF YOU HAVE NOT YET WRITTEN TO YOUR TD., PLEASE DO. It is important to keep up the pressure for another few weeks. See the list on the website http://newparkschool.ie/home/new-school/public-reps/.
  3. VISIT THEIR CLINICS. We have had great turnouts at Eamon Gilmore and Mary Mitchell O’Connor’s clinics, and we need to keep that up. Also don’t forget opposition TDs and Councillors who can play an important in continuing to exert political pressure. Monday and Saturday morning clinics are the ones to aim for.
  4. Please do not contact the Department of Education and Skills or the architect directly. The school strategy group will be liaising with both and the focus should remain on the political front in order to get the changes we are looking for.

Tender Documents to the Department

The architects have now submitted the tender documents to the Department of Education and Skills. This is GREAT news, a huge move in the right direction, and we now need to keep up the political pressure to keep the Newpark file at the top of the pile. The department says it takes 4-6 weeks to approve the documents, so we could have Department approval by the middle of June – and that’s what we need.

The Referendum Campaign and Newpark

We know political parties will be knocking on doors on the coming weeks, and we urge you to bring up the Newpark campaign with them. However, we are not advising that you use Newpark as a bargaining position, but do use this opportunity to express your concern at the delays, and say that you want to see Newpark at the top of the building list now.

Please refer to our Briefing Notes, on the website at http://newparkschool.ie/home/new-school/ – especially the “Briefing Note 2″ – to inform yourself of the facts of our case.

Student Letters

The whole school community has written personal letters to Minister Ruairi Quinn, which we hope to deliver in person in the coming week, via the Student Council representatives. This is a good opportunity for a photo opportunity, and the start of our media campaign.

Have a great weekend and keep up the good work.

Derek Lowry
School Principal – 4th May 2012.

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TWITTER: @newparknewbuild
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WEBSITE: www.newparkschool.ie