Water treatment plant issues fail to halt plans for new Cork special school

Plans to transform a former national school in Carrignavar into a new special school are continuing to press ahead, despite a statement from Uisce Éireann suggesting there is no capacity in the village’s wastewater treatment plant for new wastewater connections.

The special school proposed to be located at Carrignavar would provide up to 80 places at a time when children with special needs are experiencing great difficulty and lengthy delays in getting school places. Parents of these children have held protests in Cork and Dublin, including a sleep out at the Dáil, to highlight the issue.

The wastewater treatment plant in Carrignavar was described as being at capacity in February of last year by Uisce Éireann when it refused to connect 10 houses to the network that Cork County Council had wanted to turn into social housing. Uisce Éireann disclosed at the time that the local authority had not included a wastewater treatment plant in Carrignavar in its list of communities to be prioritised for new amenities.

Following a query from The Echo, an Uisce Éireann spokesperson said: “The collected wastewater loads in Carrignavar exceed the treatment capacity of the wastewater treatment plant and therefore there is currently no capacity for new wastewater connections.”

Statement

In its statement to The Echo, Uisce Éireann said Cork County Council had put Carrignavar at number 13 on its priority list for an upgraded waste water treatment plant, and because of this, it has not been included in the utility’s 2025-29 investment plan.

However, it is understood that the minister for special education and inclusion, Michael Moynihan, has received verbal assurances from Uisce Éireann that the wastewater treatment issue will not hinder the development of the school, which is expected to be opened early next year. 

In the meantime, children needing a place in a special school will be accommodated from September in Gaelscoil De hÍde in Fermoy, Rochestown Special School, and Cork Special School, with a number of other schools to be confirmed.

The issue of progressing the school was raised in the Dáil by Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould, who asked if Carrignavar’s wastewater treatment plant would need to be upgraded to allow the special school to be opened.

In response, education minister Helen McEntee said the “scope of repurposing works to facilitate the establishment of the new special school” was currently under way and when the contractor was being appointed, when work around the design process and works was complete, the “matters referred to by the deputy will be considered as part of this process”.

Worrying

The Sinn Féin TD said it was very worrying that it seemed like, though the project was sanctioned in 2022, that no work had been done on the project since then.

“What we cannot have is a situation whereby children are travelling from Cork city to Fermoy indefinitely,” said Mr Gould.

 “This will create uncertainty for children who need routine and it is too far for children to travel for their basic educational needs.

“The school in Carraig na bhFear is now scheduled to open for the 2026/2027 school year. That gives the department 17 months to resolve these issues.”

Nicole Ring, whose daughter is seeking a place in a special school and who is a member of a committee, Equality in Education, that has organised a number of protests on the shortage of places in special schools, told The Echo a ‘Plan B’ was now needed, as she predicted that the school would not be ready in time to open next year. “I know Carrignavar is not going to be ready, and I know that in my heart and soul,” she said.

Speaking to The Echo, Cork North Central Fianna Fáil TD Pádraig O’Sullivan said that verbal assurances had been received by Mr Moynihan that the wastewater issue would not delay the refurbishment of the school.

“Parents have been through enough, they’re anxious enough, they don’t need further anxiety,” he said. 

“We just need to get on now and repurpose the school.”

When informed of the latest Uisce Éireann statement, the Cork North Central TD said the minister’s position remained the same, that the transformation of the school would go ahead as envisaged.