Meeting planned over Strule Education Campus

A meeting is to take place between officials from the Department for Education and Fermanagh & Omagh District Council to discuss stinging criticism of the Strule Education Campus in a major report published last month.

The report, which provided a scathing assessment of the £540 million development situated on the former Lisanelly Army camp site in Omagh, called for an immediate halt to the shared education project, deeming it unjustifiable from an educational perspective.

The campus is the biggest school building programme to be planned in Northern Ireland.

Local politicians have vehemently condemned the criticisms, setting the stage for a critical dialogue with the Department for Education.

Heather Cousins, the Senior Responsible Owner (SRC) of the Strule Programme, has expressed willingness to engage in discussions regarding the campus, as highlighted in a letter presented at a recent council monthly meeting.

A date for the meeting has yet to be arranged.

In separate correspondence, Michelle O’Neill, the First Minister Designate and Sinn Fein vice-president, emphasised her party’s stance against the review’s recommendations concerning the Strule.

“We need an Executive formed immediately to ensure the completion of the Strule Shared Education Campus and Sinn Féin will continue to play our part in its delivery,” she added.