Carrick-on-Shannon's recently completed education centre is just one of a number of such centres scheduled to be revitalised under the Department of Education's building programme. Construction of centres in Limerick, Monaghan and Donegal, as well as an all-Irish centre in Cork, will begin "in the near future", says the Department of Education and Science.
When the programme is complete there will be 21 full-time centres, nine part-time and one all-Irish education centre in the State. Centres were first established in 1972 to provide meeting places for primary and post-primary teachers to discuss work-related issues; they also act as a resource and provide in-service courses. Their role has expanded to include co-ordination of national programmes such as Transition Year, relationships and sexuality education and civic social and political education.
Under the building programme to date, new centres have been completed in Carrick-on-Shannon, Blackrock, Drumcondra, Wexford, Portlaoise, Kildare, Sligo, Ennis and Athlone. Construction is under way in Galway, Mayo, Tallaght, Tralee, Navan, Waterford and Cork.
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