‘Audit of schools required to ensure that they have resources for compliance with public health advice’ – TUI  

By piofficer, Monday, 2nd November 2020 | 0 comments

The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) notes the clarifications provided by the Department of Education today in relation to a HSE live Covid-19 Principal school line, dedicated HSE school teams, dedicated testing of close contacts from a school when there is a positive case and the definition of a close contact in an educational setting.  

TUI has called for ongoing, robust engagement between unions, the Department and public health authorities to ensure that the concerns of teachers are fully addressed.   

The Union has also reiterated its call for an audit of schools to ensure that they have the required resources to ensure full compliance with public health advice.   

Speaking today, TUI General Secretary Michael Gillespie said:  

‘We welcome the clarifications provided today to schools. These are issues that we raised with the Department. However, teachers have a range of concerns that need to be addressed on an ongoing basis. We are involved in a process of constant consultation with our members and will continue to raise any arising issues with the Department.   

Ongoing, robust engagement between unions, Department of Education and public health authorities to ensure that the concerns of teachers are fully addressed is an absolute necessity.’   

Audit of schools required   

‘A recent survey of TUI members found that 71% do not believe that the enhanced teaching/staffing allocation provided to their workplaces in response to COVID-19 has been sufficient to meet additional requirements, while just over half believe that their workplace has not been provided with the requisite resources to ensure a satisfactory cleaning regime.     

A full national audit of schools is urgently required to ensure that they have the required resources to ensure full compliance with public health advice. The necessary funding must be provided in this regard.     

For example, ventilation problems will now become critical as we move towards colder weather. Many schools, particularly those based in older buildings, will require new ventilation solutions and there will also be a need for monitors to signify when air exchange is required. Again, the required resourcing must be provided.    

In the same survey, respondents identified more physical space, smaller class groups and more teachers as the measures they would most like to see from a given list to counter the risk of COVID-19.   While nobody could have anticipated the huge challenges of the pandemic, understaffing and inadequate buildings are a long-standing legacy of completely inadequate investment in education, with the latest OECD statistics ranking Ireland last of 36 countries in terms of second level investment. This era of underinvestment is placing teachers in Irish schools in a much more difficult and dangerous working environment than their counterparts in other countries.’  

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