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	The Department of Education has offered nine hours a week of private tuition to a 12-year-old Traveller from Dublin who has been refused enrolment at his local Secondary school.</p>
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	Paddy Flynn is the only child from Sixth Class in Ballyfermot&#39;s De La Salle primary school whose application to the nearby De La Salle secondary school was turned down.</p>
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	The tuition will take place at a community centre in Ballyfermot.</p>
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	De La Salle secondary school told RT&Eacute; News that Paddy Flynn&#39;s application was rejected because it was late.</p>
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	His parents, who cannot read or write, say they did not know they had to apply.</p>
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	Principal Ann Marie Leonard said that by the time Paddy&#39;s application was received, two First Year classes had been arranged for the following year and those classes were full.</p>
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	De La Salle has enrolled 38 First Year students this year.</p>
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	Enrolment data received by RT&Eacute; news shows that this is substantially fewer than were admitted last year and in the years before that.</p>
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	De La Salle, also known as St John&#39;s College, admitted 67 First Years last year and 77 in 2014.</p>
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	The Department of Education said a late application would not be a sufficient reason for a school to reject a child unless the school was already full when the application was made.</p>
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	Ms Leonard said that due to falling enrolments generally, the school had this year reduced the number of First Year classes from four to two.</p>
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	She said those classes would include young people who needed a lot of support, and were now full.</p>
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	The Flynn family have been approached by a well-wisher who has offered to pay for Paddy to attend a private school.</p>
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	However, his parents have declined the offer. They say they believe Paddy&#39;s interests would be best served by attending a local school with his friends.</p>
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	Applications made to other nearby schools on Paddy&#39;s behalf have also been rejected.</p>
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	(Published by RTE.ie on the 5<sup>th</sup> September 2016)</p>
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	<a href="http://www.rte.ie/news/2016/0905/814211-paddy-flynn-school/">http://www.rte.ie/news/2016/0905/814211-paddy-flynn-school/</a></p>
