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THE students of Scoil Mhuire in Ennistymon have started a trend which could be replicated in schools all over the country in the coming years by taking up Chinese as a foreign language.

Transition-year students from the school have just completed an eightmonth-long introduction to Mandarin Chinese.

The language classes were delivered to the girls by native Chinese speakers from the Confucius Institute, while Business and Certified Programme Facilitator, Miriam Higgins, delivered classes in Chinese culture.

“We are one of approximately 50 schools in Ireland to adopt the programme that was developed by the UCD Confucius Institute for Ireland under the guidance and support of the Confucius Institute Headquarters and the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA),” said Ms Higgins.

“This exciting and innovative Chinese programme has been a resounding success.

“Seosaimhín Uí Domhnaillín [Scoil Mhuire principal] and Geraldine Barry [Transition-Year Coordinator] have been very enthusiastic and supportive in offering the Chinese Studies Programme.”

Along with language classes, the unique initiative also teaches the girls about Chinese culture, travel, family, music, festivals and the economy. The cultural topics were taught using multimedia technology in various forms such as PPT, audio and video.

There was also additional classes in Chinese cookery given by home economics teacher Nicola Honan, as well as classes in paper cutting, calligraphy and other traditional Chinese activities.

The Confucius Institute is currently working with the Irish Government, businesses and academic institutes to develop stronger educational, cultural and commercial links between Ireland and China.

“Our aim in Ennistymon is to instill a curiosity in all things Chinese by introducing students to aspects of both modern and traditional Chinese culture and Chinese language,” continued Ms Higgins.

“Scoil Mhuire is privileged to work with the UCD Confucius Institute and to offer our students, what I believe, is a wonderful opportunity to learn about China and to study Mandarin Chinese.”

A CRANNY native has won a bursary from the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation to help fund her education research.

Úna Ní Sheanain now teaches sixth-class students in the Galway gaelscoil Scoil lognaid.

The ambitious and successful West Clare woman also manages to study for her doctorate while educating the 11- and 12-year-olds of Galway city.

Originally from the West Clare village of Cranny, where her parents Agnes and Pat still live, she attended the local primary school before studying at Cahercon Secondary School.

She has also worked with missionary nun Sister Ethel Normoyle from Lissycasey.

Ms Ní Sheanain is now studying at NUI Galway towards a Doctorate entitled ‘Re-imagining the Gaelscoil’. Her research examines how best to foster interculturalism in the primary Gaelscoil.

It aims to create links with a local intercultural school and attempts to engage teachers and students in collaboration through critical dialogue, democratic classrooms and artsbased enquiry.

Speaking at the presentation of the bursaries in Dublin, the President of INTO, Noreen Flynn, said it was a source of pride to the INTO that at least 75 per cent of primary teachers voluntarily undertake additional training and study.

“By acquiring new skills and expanding their knowledge, teachers enhance their practise and ultimately everyone benefits,” said Ms Flynn.

Every year since 1993, primary teachers undertaking research have been supported by the INTO through the Bursary Scheme.

A MAN who was sexually assaulted as a child has said he is “shocked” by a judge’s decision to hand down a suspended sentence to the offender.

The man was speaking at Ennis courthouse yesterday after Cyril Maxwell (67) received a four-year suspended sentence after pleading guilty to charges of indecent assault.

Charges of buggery against Mr Maxwell, with an address at Loughnash, Newmarket-on-Fergus, were vacated following a recent decision by the Supreme Court.

Surrounded by his family, the man said, “He destroyed my life and only for my family I wouldn’t be here. Somebody can walk into Dunnes Stores and rob a bar of chocolate and they get 12 months in jail.”

He added, “We were shocked. We thought he was going downstairs. He did me no favours by admitting his guilt because it didn’t take it away. I have been in psychiatric units since I was 20. I have tried to commit suicide three times; two of them were very close. That’s what my life has been like.”

The man said he was glad to have made the complaint. He also praised the work of local gardaí involved in the case.

The man’s daughter said that it was a “joke” that the buggery charges against Mr Maxwell were vacated

The assaults occurred over a twoyear period in Clare in the late 1960s, when the man was in his twenties and the victim was a young teenager.

The court heard that Mr Maxwell suffered from Jacobs Syndrome, a sex chromosome abnormality, and is subject to a significant regime of monitoring and anti-testosterone medication.

Judge Moran said, “This case has caused me a considerable degree of trouble.” He said that, in normal circumstances, he would impose a custodial sentence. He said the abuse had occurred a long time ago, the accused had offered an early plea of guilty, and he had also been on a course of medication since 1984.

Judge Moran said there was a low risk of Mr Maxwell re-offending. “I think it would be wrong to impose a custodial sentence. It is one of those exceptional cases.”

He imposed a four-year suspended sentence. He ordered the accused to keep the peace for a period of four years.

IT promises to be an emotional few days for staff and students of St Joseph’s traveller training centre.

The final ever presentation of FETAC level certificates to students takes place at the Auburn Lodge Hotel in Ennis on Friday.

The ceremony represents the end of an era for the centre that first opened in 1974.

The Ennis Traveller Training Centre was the first in the country. It started as part of a Combat Poverty Programme in 1974.

At that time, it was located in the grounds of the Holy Family School, Ennis. In 1982, the centre moved to a new building at the Gort Road industrial estate.

St Joseph’s, which is located in the Gort Road industrial estate, will close as a traveller-only training centre on June 29.

The building will become the first all-purpose skills unit in Ennis.

There are currently around 13 staff working at the centre. Staff will be transferred internally to other VEC schools and centres.

It will be run by Ennis Adult Education Centre, with classes offered in a number of areas including woodwork and hairdressing.

Over 60 people have been invited to Friday’s event, including former directors and board members.

According to Director Tríona Lynch, the ceremony will celebrate the history of the centre.

She said, “It is very emotional. You can see it around the place. The focus this week is on celebration and celebrating the past and looking ahead to the future.”

She added, “One of the traveller men said to me the other day that his parents attended the centre and so did his kids.

“It was part of their lives. The centre has provided nearly four decades of support for travellers.”

Ms Lynch also acknowledged the support of Clare VEC. The ceremony at the Auburn Lodge gets underway at 1pm.

THE chairman of the Ennis Joint Policing Committee (JPC) is to propose that all meetings are held in public.

Currently, the committee meetings between gardaí, local politicians, council officials and community representatives are held in private. There is one public meeting every year.

Now, the Chairman of the committee, Councillor Paul O’Shea (Lab) is calling for all meetings to be held in public.

Cllr O’Shea told last week’s meeting of Ennis Town Council that he had been calling for public sessions for the past two years. He said he would raise the matter at the next JPC meeting.

It followed criticisms of the current format by Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind).

He said, “I was quite disappointed with the last meeting. You got the feeling that we could ask as many questions as we wanted but we weren’t going to get any answers.”

Cllr Neylon proposed that any sensitive matters could be dealt with before the public session of the meeting.

He said the current format is not doing any service to the public.

Town Manager Ger Dollard told the meeting that the JPC is a separate body from the council and, as such, any changes could only be implemented by the committee members.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said the JPC is a worthwhile project and had helped develop closer links between the council and Gardaí. He backed calls for meetings to be held in public.

Mayor of Ennis, Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind) said the proposal was a matter for the JPC.

The next JPC meeting is due to take place on June 11.

VICTIMS of clerical child sex abuse or those with knowledge of abuse that has been perpetrated against children in Clare have this week been urged to step forward and alert the relevant authorities of these crimes.

The move that has been signalled as part of a new clerical child sex abuse awareness campaign being mounted by the Diocese of Killaloe throughout the county during the month of May.

This campaign was launched in the past week, just as the Catholic hierarchy was rocked by fresh abuse allegations surrrounding the investigation of notorious paedophile priest, Fr Brendan Smyth, that has left future of Cardinal Sean Brady as primate of all Ireland hanging in the balance.

As part of what the diocese has called “the importance of safeguarding children”, those who have suffered abuse in Clare have been urged to alert the Garda Siochána, the Health Services Executive or the Killaloe Diocese directly.

Throughout Clare those “concerned that someone you know is at risk in relation to a child safeguarding concern, or you wish to raise a matter from the past” have been told to come forward immediately.

“If you have grounds for concern about the welfare of a child you must act immediately to the statutory authorities and/or diocesan designated persons as soon as possible,” the Diocese of Killaloe has said.

“The designated persons will liaise with the statutory authorities – the Gardai the HSE and also the Bishop and the National Board for safeguarding children,” the diocese has added.

Since 2003, over € 2m has been paid out to victims of clerical child sex abuse in the Diocese of Killaloe. Money given victims are labelled as ‘Special Payments’ in the annual diocesan accounts published every year.

DESPITE having its Government funding cut by more than nine million euro last year, Clare County Council ended the year with a deficit of just € 47,000.

Total Government funding received by Clare County Council during 2011 was € 66.8M, compared to € 78.2m in 2010.

The council’s financial department said it achieved considerable savings through a reduction in operating costs such as payroll and has some additional income generated under the Non Principal Private Residence (NPPR) scheme.

A significant reduction in staffing levels saved the council € 1.26 million in salaries, wages and pension costs.

The pay roll cost for 2011 was € 40.9 million, compared to € 42.2 million incurred the previous year.

Reduced call outs to the emergency services also had an impact on council savings.

Not surprisingly there was an in- crease in uncollected rates at the end of 2011 over the previous year yet the total cash intake had also increased by 10 per cent to € 34.5 million.

The council also managed to reduce its long-term loans by € 6.6 million.

Head of Finance Niall Barrett noted that the 2011 financial year was a difficult one that required the council to make expenditure savings in order to negate both the impact of a significant reduction in Government funding, and other income reductions.

“Taking into consideration the fiscal challenges faced by the Coun- cil, this result is welcomed and has arisen from effective budget management of both expenditure and income throughout the organisation,” he added.

“The key factors that influenced the financial performance of the council included an increased level of vacant properties impacting Commercial Rates and a general increase in irrecoverable charges due to the impact of the economic climate, NPPR income, payroll savings, the severe cold weather and resulting damage to water mains, the deferral of the am- ortization of unfunded capital balances relating to the Central Waste Management Facility at Ballyduffbeg; and critical maintenance and security issues at Traveller Accommodation sites,” he said.

“While the overall result is almost break-even and can be considered to be positive in the context, cognisance must be taken of the fact that this situation is only arrived at by virtue of the corrective actions taken by the council in reducing its expenditure in line with available funding in 2011,” added Mr. Barrett.

KILRUSH TOWN Council has proposed to build an outdoor fitness area in the town.

Cllr Liam O’Looney (FF) suggested that developing the outdoor fitness area for adults in the centre of the town would merge well with the proposed sporting facility proposed for the Cooraclare road.

Town Clerk John Corry agreed the council should look into providing such a public facility.

He said the town council was represented on the Recreation and Sport Strategy Steering Committee, which has prepared a strategy for the development and growth of active recreation and sporting activities in the town.

“Key objectives of this strategy were to actively research all possible available sites and sources of funding for proposed new facilities in order to develop milti use sport and recreational facilities in West Clare and to actively involve local communities in agreeing the facilities to be developed through meaningful public consultation.

“Kilrush Town Council had worked towards these objectives by identifying in conjunction with local sporting group, a site on the Cooraclare Road which could be utilised for a multipurpose sports facility including a synthetic playing pitch, grass pitches, cross country running track and dressing rooms,” he said.

“Kilrush Town Council and Clare County Council are presently applying for grant assistance under the 2012 Sports capital Grant Scheme for funding for the first two phases of this development.”

“An out door fitness area could also be considered as a future phase of this development or indeed an alternative site in the town could also be selected.

“It is recommended that the location of any such facilities should be located in an area that will be utilised y the public for recreational purposes for example walking.

“Therefore consultation with the public would be advised,” said the town clerk. The funding of such a fines are would need to be carefully considered and may qualify for assistance under a future application for grant assistance under the Sports Capital Programme.”

Cllr O’Looney suggested that the outdoor fitness area could also be situated adjacent to the playground, so that parents could use it while watching their children play.

AFTER A year of strictly balancing the books, Kilrush Town Council has a surplus fund to support two local projects and pay off an old debt.

According to the council’s Annual Financial Statement, the savings were achieved through cuts in expenditure during the year across most services divisions, strict budgetary controls and prudent financial management. This all resulted in an overall surplus of € 2,165 for the year 2011.

In light of the results, the council agreed to set aside € 40,000 for development works at the proposed Cooraclare Road Sports Development and € 12,000 for the recently adopted shop front grant scheme.

A further € 20,000 is to be used to pay off the terminating contract for the controversial superloo.

Welcoming the outcome of the fiscal report for 2011, Cllr Liam Wil- liams (FG) said that every effort must be made to ensure that the Cooraclare Sports Facility remains top of the town council’s agenda.

“We must make every effort to get grants for the facility. It has to be a priority for this year,” he said.

Cllr Paul Moroney (Ind) agreed that € 20,000 towards riding the town of the superloo was money well spent.

It was not easy for the council’s financial department, led by Colette Costello, to balance the 2011 budget however as the “percentage yields from rates and housing rents are a reflection of the difficult financial situation business and house holds presently find themselves in.”

Town Clerk John Corry told council members, however, that the rate collection “compares favourably to the towns and is the largest collection rate in the county.” He said legal proceedings would be a last resort in an effort to secure money owed from rents and rates, as the council tries to “focus on people who are in difficulty” and try to facilitate tenants.

To date, 76 per cent of commercial rates have been collected, the same amount as 2010, while 90 per cent of rents have been paid, down three per cent on the previous year. There was also a sharp reduction in income relating to Development Contributions in 2011, which according to council officials reflects the current economic climate. The development income for 2011 had fallen to € 3,397 from a high of € 273,096 in 2007.

Mayor of Kilrush, Cllr Ian Lynch (FG) told the members it was a challenge at the beginning of 2011 to work out how the ever-decreasing budget would provide services for the town and its citizens.

Having achieved that with a surplus, the mayor said he hoped that Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government would consider such achievements of town councils as he considers their fate.

SHANNON Airport will become “a carcass” if a new management structure for the airport is not fully operational before international airlines decide their 2013 route schedule this August.

The airport could also become the victim of “asset stripping” by the Dublin Airport Authority, with the loss of Aer Rianta International and the possible loss of the Shannon slots at Heathrow Airport, should the government’s stake in Aer Lingus be sold.

These were the main concerns expressed by councillors at a special meeting of Clare County Council on the subject of Shannon Airport yesterday.

Shannon Cllr PJ Ryan (IND) said that a steering group, including a member of Clare County Council, must be put in place immediately with a view to creating a new management structure of the airport as soon as possible.

“Setting up a steering committee is fine but if don’t have any decision made by this steering committee before the end of 2012, Shannon Airport will become a carcass of an airport,” he said.

Cllr Jerry Flynn (FG) warned that this process should not be used as a means to allow the Dublin Airport Authority to strip the assets of Shannon Airport.

“Aer Rianta should not be given away, it is worth € 100 million, and it should not be handed over to the DAA. Nor should the Heathrow slots be lost. This will amount to asset stripping for the airport in Shannon,” he said. “Shannon Airport also saves Dublin Airport around € 25 million a year by allowing all emergency landings to come through Shannon. If it was not for this, they would have to shut down Dublin Airport a number of times each year.”

Chairman of the council’s Transport Special Policy Committee (SPC), Richard Nagle (FF), said that the timescale for establishing the steering committee was critical.

“Concerns have been expressed about the timescale of the proposals. It was highlighted by speaker after speaker [at yesterday’s Transport SPC meeting]. It was felt that any delay would leave the future of the airport in limbo,” he said.

“The concerns of the staff down there need to be address without delay. Time is critical – the steering group needs to be put in place now an need to come up with proposals for the airport.”

Cllr Patricia McCarthy (IND) also warned about the airport being left in limbo.

“What is not acceptable is that we are now entertaining in a period of limbo and we don’t have an idea what s going to happen to Shannon during this period,” said Cllr McCarthy.

“My main concerns stems from the fact that while a decision has been made, there is no indication of how this is going to be achieved and what impact this will have on the staff down there going forward.”