'Who do we hold to account? Where do we go to get an answer?'

A MOTHER unable to secure a junior infants place for their child in the Dunshaughlin area told a meeting filled with parents in a similar position “we need solutions and we need them now.”

The public meeting for parents who have so far been unable to secure a junior infants place for their child for the coming school year took place on Thursday night 5th March)in the Parish Hall in Dunshaughlin.

The meeting was organised by local parents Aine McKenna, Lucia Onofri, and Ciara McCormac who invited all parents, guardians, and community members affected to attend.

At the start of the meeting, Aine McKenna said “we need solutions and we need them now.”

“Families and communities are under pressure facing uncertainty and stress about something that’s fundamental for their child’s education. If this issue is not addressed this year, it will not go away. It will become an even bigger problem in 2027 and beyond.”

TD Darren O’Rourke (SF), TD Gillian Toole (Ind), Cllr Caroline O’Reilly (FF), Cllr Gerry O’Connor (FG), and Cllr Fionnan Blake (SF) were present and spoke in support of the parents at the meeting.

Principals from Dunshaughlin Gaelscoil, St Seachnalls NS, Culmullen National School, Dunshaughlin CNS also attended.

The huge growth in population in Dunshaughlin in recent years which has seen many young families move into new housing developments in the area has led to a shortage of primary school places, something parents say should have been foreseen and planned for.

Again this year there are not enough places for the children due to start school and parents are left stressed and anxious that their child will not get a space locally.

Driving to schools in the wider area is not an option for many parents and most of those who bought houses in Dunshaughlin did so with the expectation that their children would have access to services like schools and childcare in the immediate area.

Last year, an additional junior infants class was sanctioned for Dunshaughlin Community National School but there is no word yet on what the Department of Education's intentions are.

A spokesperson recently confirmed that it had sought admissions data for schools in the Dunshaughlin School Planning area for 2026 and said the department would ensure that there are sufficient school places available and will put any required solutions in place.

Parents came together to press upon public representatives and the Department of Education, the urgency of the situation and the need for better planning.

Shauna Walton, whose child has autism, told the meeting that two of her children go to the Gaelscoil but she hasn't managed to get a place for son in the school.

Lucia Onofri told how her daughter had not got a place in the village and would now have to travel to Culmullen National School. Lucia and her husband Ian O'Sullivan both attended St Seachnaills, as did their extended families for generations, so it is both frustrating and also sad for them that their own children haven't secured a place in their local school.

Another parent, who lives beside St Seachnaills NS but didn't get a place for her child said she would have to get a second car to drop her son to school if he has to go outside the village.

She added: “It doesn’t make any sense to me and I feel like I am being punished because of the month he happened to be born.”

Cllr Caroline O’Reilly said “I have been in your situation and the only difference is there was only a small number of us whereas with yourselves you have an advantage in that you have quite a lot of you there so that justify a response from the department to provide you places for the children”.

“My daughter goes to school in the next county… and it still annoys me to this day”.

Sinn Fein TD Darren O’Rourke told the meeting he brought this situation up in the Dail to junior minister for education asking what the short term and future plansare . He said there was a recognition of a shortfall in the area and commitment to provide some duress to it but no detail on what this may be.

Deputy O'Rourke said: “I haven’t been able to get the department and the ministers to give me the answers that I would like to get.”

“Stick together on this, we will do our ever best… to try and get a solution for this as quickly as is possible”.

One parent asked the local representatives at the meeting ““where do we go next?”

“Darren (O’Rourke) came in and the department is not answering him, you (Cllr O‘Connor) have stuff there that a blind man could see and they’re not answering you.”

“If local representatives can’t put the pressure on, where do we go because I have a four year old at home and I don’t know where she’s going next year?”

“Who do we hold to account? Where do we go to get an answer in a timely fashion and hold somebody to account?”