SENATOR JOHN WHELAN Monasterevin Summer 2015 TWO NEW SCHOOLS FOR MONASTEREVIN As I went to both primary and secondary school in Monasterevin, one of my top priorities since being elected to the Senate was to help secure new schools for the town. Along with my colleague Deputy Jack Wall we have worked hard on this with the principals, parents, parish and boards of management. As part of the process of engagement, negotiations and in order to press the urgent need to expedite these school projects we brought both Education Ministers Ruairi Quinn and Jan O Sullivan to the town to see the schools and the need first hand. The hard work and efforts of all those involved have finally paid off. Monasterevin is to get two modern state-of-the-art bespoke designed new schools. This is very positive news for the future of the town and its families. I have refrained from putting anything about the new schools into the public domain until I was certain that it was credible and that we could categorically stand over this information as reliable, honest and accurate.

ST PAUL'S WILL BE BUILT FIRST IN THE GROUNDS OF MOORE ABBEY First to be built will be the new St Paul's Secondary School. Delays in securing a suitable site have finally been resolved and this school is included in the Government's capital programme for 2015/2016.

An award winning design team have been commissioned to work St Paul's school visits Leinster House with the school authorities to prepare design and plans. All outstanding issues regarding the purchase of site have been agreed with Moore Abbey. Planning permission is due to be A NEW PRIMARY SCHOOL IS NEXT lodged shortly with Kildare County Council for the new secondary Following the agreement within the boards of management and school. All going to plan the school will be ready to open for the the parish a new amalgamated primary school is to be built on new school year in September 2017. the grounds of the existing girls school. As one of the class of 1978 who were the first ever to take their Local agreement between the school authorities and all the Leaving Cert in St Paul's (under our Principal and Vice-Principal stakeholders was key to this and great progress is now being Noel Maher and Gerry O Mahony) I am absolutely delighted that made under the chairmanship of John Forde. they are finally within touching distance of getting the new A design team is now in place and future need among the issues school that the staff, pupils and parents so richly deserve and to be considered as Scoil Naomh Eimhin and St Peter's Boys require. National School amalgamate on the one campus. I cannot commend or praise the commitment of the present The process is the the project to advance now to architectural Principal, Mr Brian Bergin sufficiently for his own dedication and planning stage and progressed to final planning stage so that it is perseverance to this cause, despite so many setbacks along the well placed for consideration for capital funding in the next round way. Along with his loyal staff and board of management they of construction projects, which is due to be announced in deserve full credit for sticking with this through think and thin. September. The new school will be a credit to them and a great boost to the The new Monasterevin primary school, thanks to the co- town. Parents and students can now commit to enrollment in St operation and hard work of the parents and the parish is well Paul's in the confidence that they will soon be enjoying education poised and position to take advantage of this timing and to in a brand new school campus. secure funding to go to build without delay in 2016.

CONTACT JOHN: Seanad Éireann Constituency Office Web: labour.ie/johnwhelan Kildare Street, Dublin 2 Bull Lane, Portlaoise, Co. Laois John Whelan Phone: 01 618 3244 Phone: 057 86 34047 Email:[email protected] Mobile: 087 2509663 @SenJohnWhelan BOUNDARY CHANGE FOR MONASTEREVIN Since the report of the independent Constituency Commission in 2012, Monasterevin is now in the new 3-seat Laois constituency.

This change becomes effective for the first time in the next general election and affects a population of 7,186 in south Kildare, who will be voting for the first time in the new Laois constituency. Laois has been separated from the former 5- seater of Laois-Offaly. The map above illustrates the extent of this significant change.

You can see that it includes the six electoral districts of Monasterevin, Kildgangan, Ballybracken, Harristown, Kilberry and Churchtown. It also stretches quite close towards Nurney, Kildare Town and Athy. All these areas still remain in KIldare for the local elections and for the purpose of elections to Kildare County Council. WORKING FOR IMPROVED FACILITIES AND A YOUTH CAFE When I was growing up in Monasterevin I loved to play GAA, both football and hurling. But if you weren't interested in these team sports there was plenty of other facilities such as the CYMS where we played snooker, table tennis and badminton and had a place we could meet up and hang out, under the watchful eye of the caretaker, Jim Moore. The CY Hall would double up for discos on Saturday nights. The hall was a hub for Irish dancing too with the place packed for feis and my sister Trish among those winning medals for the Francis Browne dancing school. Marian Moore was the town's champion dancer at that time. While it had its own peculiar essence we also had Terry Mac's Model Cinema to enjoy Friday night's at James Bond and Bruce Lee films. There was basketball for all in the gym that we helped build one summer with Tom Collins; tennis down at the tarmac courts and fishing all you wanted on the Barrow The St Evin's Park/Old Grange street league team and Canal...where we also swam up past the drawbridge with Gerry Brereton and my Dad, Paddy Whelan from and in the sandy bottoms. Plenty of summer work too the early 70s. The underage street leagues were picking fruit for Parkinsons or Lambe Brothers. really popular at the time. Can you name the team? To be honest we seem to have gone backwards in terms of facilities, services and summertime opportunities for teenagers in the town. This is an indictment on us all. I have been engaging with both Kildare Youth Services and Monasterevin Youth Action in an attempt to address these unacceptable shortcomings in services. I am fully supportive of their efforts to establish a dedicated space for young people, a Youth Cafe, similar to the facility that works so well in other towns like Rathangan and Portlaoise. There are other facilities required for our young people but a Youth Cafe would be a good start and I am determined to work along with Pat Balfe, Paul Marron and others until we achieve this objective. €375,000 UPGRADE PLANNED FOR DAY CARE CENTRE HSE COMMIT TO IMPROVE & INVEST IN MONASTEREVIN HEALTH SERVICES Following a meeting with HSE senior management in Naas earlier this month they have categorically confirmed and committed to improving and investing in the health services provision in Monasterevin. In Brief the good news is: I HSE to invest €375,000 to re-open and develop Day Care Centre on Drogheda Street

I Health Centre at Cowpasture to remain open and services extended

I Plans to improve and extend Monasterevin based GP service

I €17m investment in St Vincent's Hospital, Athy a top priority

I HSE also agree that child disability assessment and service delays are unacceptable and will be addressed There has been much public anxiety and concern around these issues in recent months. I know about it first hand as my mother who lives in St Evin's uses the Day Care Centre on a weekly basis and along with others relies on and values this facility. It came as a big shock to them all when the premises on Drogheda Street was closed on health and safety grounds. A full assessment of this issue has now been concluded and impressive plans drawn up to fully re-open and redevelop the premises on Drogheda Street. This will see an expansion of the services, facilities and supports available here under the one roof. The lack of sufficient information and inadequate communication has led to understandable speculation that this service could be under threat, but I am confident that this has now been resolved following a comprehensive meeting with HSE management. This meeting was attended by my colleague Deputy Jack Wall TD and your local councillors Aoife Breslin and Mark Wall. I also invited Pat Ryan, Mary Fitzpatrick, Mary Harrison and Dan Clancy to attend on behalf of the local committee and community. They also made a strong case about the importance of the service and the need for the HSE to commit to the facility and bring clarity to the situation. For the moment the service continues to be provided in a temporary capacity thanks to the help of Monasterevin GAA in their pavilion. The HSE have committed to visiting the Day Care Centre and discussing their plans with the service users, the local committee all with a view to reassuring everyone and that we all work together to make it happen as soon as possible. In relation to the Health Clinic, unfortunately it is necessary for me to scotch malicious scaremongering on the part of certain unscrupulous elements for their own devious ends. The health clinic remains open and was never scheduled for closure and rumours to that effect have been categorically rejected by the HSE. So there is no need for any campaign or online petitions to have it kept open. It remains open for services as normal.

Pictured visiting the day care services temporarily accommodated in the Monasterevin GAA pavilion with Minister Kevin Humphreys and at the Riverside Park which has been so well developed and maintained with the help of a Community Employment Scheme, with which the late Ned O Rourke and my father, Paddy Whelan were so actively involved. COUNTY COUNCIL COMMIT TO ROAD FLOODING AT PASSLANDS, WORKS IN MONASTEREVIN AREA MONASTEREVIN The R424 has a residual drainage issue from the canal bridge to the In response to ongoing representations from your local Barrow bridge at Passlands. This area is included in works to be Councillors Mark Wall and Aoife Breslin, Kildare County Council commenced in the current year. has committed to a programme of road works in the area, as well as addressing other issues such as flooding. These works TAKING CHARGE OF ROS GLAS ESTATE have only recently become the responsbility of the Engineer from the Athy Municipal Area following the reconfiguration of In response to representations by Cllr Mark Wall Kildare County the County Council electoral areas. Council have being in contact with the Developer and are waiting on documentation back from him. As this is one of the older estates in The Municipal District Office intends to undertake the following Monasterevin, the Council are anxious to take this estate in charge works in Monasterevin in the current year – there are a number and will work with the Residents to achieve this objective. of drainage issues at Passlands and St Evin’s Park that need to be resolved; the main road through the town (R448) requires attention in the current year and it is intended to surface dress SUPPORTING TEACH TEARMAINN IN a section of this road; there are a number of side roads ie KILDARE Drogheda Street that will require surfacing in the coming We recently made a courtesy call in Teach Tearmainn Women & months. Monasterevin and environs has only recently come Children's Refuge in Kildare town.The staff and service there carry under the aegis of the Athy Municipal District Office. The Office out invaluable work in support of those who are victims of is compiling a plan of works for the next three years which will domestic violence. The refuge does tremendous work with limited address the main issues in the town. resources and we continue to engage and seek further funding for At the moment the Office is undertaking extensive road works Teach Tearmainn from Tusla so that refuge can function and in the Coolagh/ Derryoughter /Clarey/Rathconnell area which is operate to its full capacity for the women and families from our part of the extended Athy Municipal District. community that require such sanctuary and assistance. GARRYHINCH RESERVOIR - VITAL INFRASTRUCTURE, REAL JOBS I am continuing to campaign in support of the Garryhinch Reservoir a vital infrastructural project being sponsored by Bord na Mona on cutaway bog between Portarlington and Mountmellick. It will cost €550m and create hundreds of real jobs, initially in terms of construction, then in terms of its operation and recreational and tourism spin-off. I have been working tirelessly with Bord na Mona to help bring this project to fruition, the first reservoir to be built in the country in over 50 years. The project is currently the subject of environmental impact and feasibility studies by Irish Water in conjunction with BnM. If successfully brought to fruition the Garryhinch reservoir will be one of the biggest capital projects ever embarked upon in the country. It would be funded by Bord na Mona and help secure a safe and sustainable supply of water for Kildare and the Leinster region for families, farms, factories and help attract further foreign direct investment such as Intel, which relies so much on having a secure supply of water. There would be one thousand construction jobs for over three years and hundreds of good jobs thereafter in the operation and development of the reservoir as a recreational resource. This project will be an important source of employment for our area for generations to come and put the cutaway bogland to a sustainable and beneficial use for all the community.

SENATOR JOHN WHELAN Bull Lane, Portlaoise, Co. Laois Phone: 057 86 34047 John Whelan Email: [email protected] @SenJohnWhelan Web: labour.ie/johnwhelan Working with your local Labour team

JACK WALL TD CLLR NOEL TUOHY CLLR AOIFE BRESLIN CLLR MARK WALL 01 6183571 086 606 9666 086 2797694 083 3341488 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

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