Ten years after locals started campaigning for a secondary school in the South Drogheda area, the Department of Education has today published planning notices in the national media stating its intention to apply to Meath County Council for permission to build a new, 1,000 pupil post-primary school at Mill Road, Colpe West, Drogheda.
The area has seen huge levels of housing development, and six years ago the Department announced its decision to award patronage of Drogheda’s proposed new post primary school to the Educate Together movement following an online poll.
The 2018 announcement was greeted with great joy by parents on the South side of Drogheda and hailed as a victory for parent power. That joy has dimmed somewhat in the meantime however, as students at Drogheda Educate Together Secondary School were forced to attend classes in prefabs and to go without sports facilities.
During that time the parent’s council and board of management struggled in vain to get their school listed for development year after year and the Department spent millions renting temporary prefab classrooms.
The proposed development will comprise of 43 classrooms, with associated laboratories and specialist classrooms, a multi-purpose hall, a physical education suite including a physical education hall, and all ancillary teacher and pupil facilities with a gross floor area of c. 11,302 sq m over three storeys.
Vehicular access to the site is proposed via a new priority-controlled T-junction located on the new link road to the southwest of the site. The proposal includes two pedestrian and cyclist access points, two pedestrian only access points, staff and visitor parking spaces and designated drop-off and set down facilities.
The development will also include the provision of an external storage building, a bin store, bicycle and scooter parking, vehicle and bus drop off/set down areas, internal access roads hard and soft play areas including six hard play court areas.
In a statement issued today, Labour TD Ged Nash TD who has been campaigning on behalf of the school, said he was delighted that the planning application for the permanent Drogheda Educate Together Secondary School building is being lodged with Meath County Council.
“This is the culmination of many years of campaigning and I am delighted to have played a part, working alongside great and committed people who care about our community and the future of our young people” he said.
“I want to congratulate the school principal and staff, the board, parents and students on getting to this milestone moment.”
