‘It shouldn’t be this difficult’ — School forced to ask parents for toilet paper and towels
A school in Co Louth is making headlines today after asking schoolchildren to bring their own toilet paper, soap, and hand towels.
The school in Darver, County Louth, which is struggling to make ends meet, found itself in the difficult position of having to ask children to bring in their own bathroom essentials because it lacked the funding to cover them.
Speaking to RTE One’s Liveline programme this afternoon, the school’s principal, Emily Scully, said she had to decide last month whether to pay the school’s electricity bill or order toilet paper and hand towels for the bathrooms.
Darver National School in Co. Louth. Pic: Darver National School
So a note was sent home with pupils asking parents to send in a roll of toilet paper and a hand towel with their child the following week.
The response from the local community was overwhelming, with parents and local businesses stepping in to supply the bathroom essentials until funding could be made available.
However, speaking to Ciaran Cuddihy, the principal of Darver National School, Emily Scully said while the generosity of the local community was very much appreciated, it still does not address the bigger issue that schools are underfunded and are having to make these types of decisions all the time.
Darver National School in Co. Louth. Pic: Darver National School
Emily added that one of the most stressful parts of her job is balancing the books and paying the bills for electricity, heat, insurance, and other essentials like bathroom supplies and cleaning, which do not add up to the amount the school receives from the Government grant.
The grant is given per pupil, and for smaller schools like Darver National School, with just 71 pupils, it does not cover everything the school needs to stay warm, efficient and safe.
Principal Scully revealed that the grant is paid in two instalments: 70% in January and 30% in June, but Emily says there is a mismatch between the school’s costs and the money they receive.
She also revealed that if the school loses a student, they lose the grant for that child, but insurance and heating costs remain the same.
Darver National School in Co. Louth. Pic: Darver National School
Principal Scully proposed that the Department of Education could take on the insurance liability for all schools, as this is paid out of each school’s capitation grant, and in some schools, it could be up to half of the money they receive. 50% on insurance alone.
She said it was very embarrassing to have to email parents of the children in her school to ask for simple supplies like toilet paper, but the alternative was that she carried the burden of stress all alone, worrying about which bills to pay, adding that most schools now rely on the goodwill of parents and on fundraisers to survive.
‘In a country as well off as Ireland is at the moment, we should not be having this problem. There is something systematically wrong with the way we fund our schools, and it shouldn’t be this difficult.’
