SETU ‘only interested in accommodation’ at Carlow College

SERIOUS questions were raised at the last Carlow County Council meeting about the future of Carlow College, with councillors criticising the ongoing uncertainty around the site and calling for greater local authority involvement.

Carlow College announced in May that it would wind down over two years, with its campus transferring to South East Technological University (SETU).

Councillor Fergal Browne had strong words at the council meeting, saying that “it has been clear to me for some time that SETU never had any interest in taking over Carlow College”, arguing that its involvement had originally centred on academic staff retention and course retention, neither of which transpired.

“The obvious people to be involved in that site, to me, is the local authority,” cllr Browne said. “We own the Visual Arts Centre and the site next door. A lot of the site can never be built on nor should it be.” Cllr Browne went on to ask whether there had been any communications from SETU on the matter and asked: “Can we make the case that we take over the entire site and send it back to the state?” He said he believed the council was “in a position to do a lot more with the site than SETU ever will,” claiming that “as far as I can see, it’s only accommodation they’re interested in.” He said he was currently “very unimpressed” with the third-level institution.

Cllr Adrienne Wallace also raised the issue of Carlow College, asking for an update on her recent motion calling for the full release of the Mazars report, which The Nationalist recently received through a Freedom of Information request though it was almost fully redacted.

Cllr Paul Doogue raised concerns about courses winding down over the next two years, telling the meeting that he had been approached by the parent of a Carlow College student. The parent said a module was not running because there was currently no lecturer covering it and that the student “was totally unsure what’s going to happen and worried if she would get the chance to finish up her course”.

Responding, chief executive Coilín O'Reilly said that while questions around staff and courses were not strictly a matter for the council, a working group had been established to examine the future of the site and that he would represent Carlow County Council on it. “When that meeting happens, I will be in attendance,” he said.

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