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Organisers of Irish language courses in the Gaeltacht have expressed disappointment that traditional summer courses for school children have been cancelled.
This is the second successive year that Irish college courses have been cancelled and a number of organisers said the sector needs urgent Government help if it is to open in 2022.
Pre-Covid some 27,000 students attended Irish colleges each summer, mostly in the West of Ireland, but also in Meath, Cork and Waterford. Coláistí Gaeilge are worth an estimated €50m anually to the local Gaeltacht economy.
Just last month Minister for the Gaeltacht Catherine Martin said she was working to significantly expand a scheme which provides supports to pupils in disadvantaged areas to attend the Gaeltacht.
However on Friday Government Chief Whip and Minister of State for the Gaeltacht Jack Chambers announced the cancellation of this year’s courses, saying it was the “ outcome of the extensive consultation process undertaken with the Irish language summer colleges sector”.
Mr Chambers said during the consultation process homeowners (traditionally called a bean an tí ) who provide accommodation for students, and course operators had expressed “considerable health and safety concerns “.
They were worried for Gaeltacht families and the local communities arising from the hosting of summer courses due to Covid-19, he said.
Mr Chambers said: “We are conscious of the consequences of this decision for the Gaeltacht economy which is reliant on the summer courses. For this reason, we will evaluate the impact of this development on the sector with a view to progressing an appropriate stabilisation package” he said.
Irish language schools contacted by The Irish Times on Friday said the decision, while not entirely unexpected, could have been made earlier.
Páidí Ó Sé of Coláistí Chorca Dhuibhne in the west Kerry Gaeltacht said regulations relating to children’s physical and personal safety as well as accommodation standards had improved beyond all recognition over the last 20 years. This had lead to additional costs and the entrance costs for new accommodation providers were in the order of €10,000, while it cost little or nothing to place accommodation on AirBnB or similar platforms instead.
He said in a recent recruitment drive did not get one single application from any additional householders offering to supply accommodation. The prospect of two years out of business meant that it was not going to be business as usual, in 2022. A strategy would need to be put in place by the Government to promote the sector if it is to reopen next year, he said.
“I do think the Government consulted people about this year’s cancellation, but really a decision should have been taken six to eight weeks ago”, he added.
A spokesman for the Irish language movement Conradh na Gaeilge also expressed concern over the two-year break saying there would be a break in the tradition of Irish college attendance among families as well as among accommodation providers. He said a “government plan” needed to be put in place for 2022.
Last year a €4.7 million fund was put in place to assist areas affected by the cancellation of classes.