Social Democrats Cllr. Jennifer Whitmore today welcomed news that the online patronage competition for the new secondary school for Greystones and Kilcoole has begun. The school, due to open in 2020, is being established to meet the high demands in area for secondary school places.
Whitmore said “The Department of Education has today posted online details of the patronage competition for the new secondary school for Greystones / Kilcoole. This means that parents and guardians of children who are due to enroll in post-primary school from 2020-2024 in Greystones / Kilcoole are invited to complete an online survey to decide which patron will run the new school.
“Four patrons have applied to run the new secondary school. These are An Foras Pátrúnachta, Educate Together, Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB) and Scoil Sinéad Ltd. This survey will remain open until 4th October. I welcome the fact that the Department is moving very quickly on setting up this new school. In order for the school to open for 2020, considerable work will need to be done in establishing the Board of Management and hiring staff over the next year, so I am pleased that the process is moving quickly. I would also imagine that this will bring much comfort to parents whose children don’t have a place yet for 2020 as they can now see progress being made.
“However, as the survey is open until 4th October, I would recommend that parents and guardians wait a little while before completing the survey, as I know some of the patrons are planning public meetings and information sessions and this may help inform their decision. It is also important that parents are aware though that once a patron is chosen, they will still need to enroll in that school once it has been established ie completing the survey only indicates your preference of patron, it does not mean you have enrolled.“
