Upper Bann Constituency Association of the Progressive Unionist Party
shows support to Education Equality for Lurgan
The Upper Bann Constituency Association of the Progressive Unionist Party has pledged its support for the ideals behind the formation of the Education Equality for Lurgan campaign. PUP spokesperson for Upper Bann, Robert Black, has stated that, “The PUP are in complete agreement that a Lurgan solution must be found to allow all children to continue their education through to Key Stage 4(KS4) in the town.”
He continued, “It seems that there is an agenda within both the Department of Education and the Education Authority to push through an out of Lurgan solution, based solely on financial savings and statistics. However, we believe that a town the size of Lurgan should not have to bus children to other neighbouring towns and, we urge those who wish to push this through to stop and reconsider.”
“A school is the heart and lifeblood of a community. On so many occasions, we have seen schools closed and the local economy fade away to nothing, bringing dereliction and unemployment. This cannot be allowed to happen in Lurgan. All pupils regardless of ability or background deserve to be given due care and consideration while being treated treated with complete equality. We see Catholic Maintained Schools being heavily invested in and other examples of schools such as Dundonald High being saved. There are several options for allowing all KS4 stage children to continue their education in Lurgan and these must be fully explored and the most viable option implemented.”
We believe that Education Equality for Lurgan are currently working on these viable options and we urge pupils, their parents, families and the community as a whole to get behind the initiative to make their voices heard and ensure that a Lurgan option is pursued and acted upon.