Stability fund saves Mna Tí after summer schools bite the dust

Minister of State for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands Seán Kyne said the fund would provide a lifeline to over a dozen coláistí samhraidh in Galway, and the mná tí who provide care for visiting students in the Connemara Gaeltacht.

Under the scheme, €3.1 million has been allocated to colleges to enable them to refund parents who had deposits paid, while €1.6 million will be ring-fenced to offset the loss of income of host families.

Gaeltacht residents had expressed fear that one of their only sources of income would be cut off following the cancellation of courses – compounded by the fact that the April 20 cancellation was not accompanied by an announcement of financial support for those adversely affected.

However, Senator Kyne said the scheme had to get the approval of the Department of An Taoiseach and of Public Expenditure and Reform – with the almost €5 million scheme to be funded from within the Department’s existing budget.

“There was funding there in the Department’s Community and Language Supports Programme, but we had to get permission from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to repurpose that funding.

“There are obviously huge demands on budgets at the moment so I had to get permission before that money could be spent,” explained the former TD for Galway West.

This funding would be crucial, he said, to allow colleges to begin planning for 2021 courses and to ensure the sustainability of the sector which is worth in the region of €50 million to mostly rural Gaeltacht areas.

“It’s a very important sector and what’s most important at the moment is to prepare for 2021. Part of that task is to ensure that we leave the coláistí samhraidh viable for 2021 and that the mná tí would be willing to participate in 2021.

“The major challenge is getting through this year, but ensuring that we have it set-up for 2021, by providing stability for the sector. It’s also important that we provide this stimulus to the local economy,” said Senator Kyne.

While the funding announced was only a small portion of what would normally be generated by over 26,000 students travelling to the Gaeltacht each summer, it would go some way in ensuring that there was money circulating in these areas.

“Obviously, we won’t have the bonanza we normally have with parents coming from Dublin and elsewhere of a Sunday to see their child in the coláistí samhraidh – that won’t be there this year – but there will be some funding for the mná tí to ensure the viability of the sector through 2021 and beyond.

“The summer colleges, from autumn, will be taking bookings again and working on next year’s bookings, preparing brochures and so on. It’s very important that they are able to move ahead and plan for that,” said Senator Kyne.

Meanwhile, Conradh na Gaeilge has welcomed the announcement, with Uachtarán Dr Niall Comer stating that summer colleges were crucial to the survival of Gaeltacht communities.

“The Gaeltacht summer colleges have and will always be an essential part of the very fabric of the Gaeltacht communities and if the Gaeltacht areas are to survive, those colleges must be identified as a central component of their future.

“All of us in the Irish speaking community and further afield have a duty to stand strong for local Gaeltacht communities who have, for decades, provided a haven for the language and its learners. We welcome this decision to support the Gaeltacht colleges and communities in these exceptional times and thank Senator Kyne for his work in ensuring the delivery of this support scheme,” said Dr Comer.

Senator Kyne said application forms for the scheme for both the colleges and mná tí would be available within the next fortnight.