The issue of an extension at Belturbet's Milltown National School has reached the ears of the Seanad and the newly-appointed Minister for Special Education. In the last 20 years the primary school has increased its enrolment by around 300 per cent from 56 pupils in 2006 to 174 today. In that time, the extensions they have been approved for have not been delivered.
Currently, students are being taught in four modular building which are taking up playground space and the school hall is also being used as a classroom so the school cannot hold general assemblies or PE indoors when the weather is poor. When Minister for Special Education Michael Moynihan came to the Seanad recently, Cavan-Monaghan Senator Paulie Tully pointed out to him that Millltown NS has been waiting on its extension since 2021.
Management was told the Belturbet school was approved for two Special Education Teacher rooms and a mainstream classroom in July of that year. The following March, Milltown was further approved for two general classrooms, toilets, two SEN rooms, a SEN base room and toilets with a budget of €1.9m. But to date, no work has begun at the school. When Senator Tully pressed the Minister in the following exchange he gave her a firm commitment in response (listen below):
