Latest news with #Bray
Irish Independent
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Sinéad O'Connor fans from Australia to Europe gather in Bray for star's second anniversary
The gathering at the Martello Hotel – just doors down from where Sinead used to live, at Montebello, on Strand Road – was described by Tara Brady, who helped organise it, as 'a warm, intimate afternoon filled with music, memories, and connection'. 'Fans travelled from across the globe – New Zealand, Canada, Australia, the UK, Spain, France, and Holland – all united by their deep love for Sinéad and her music. We shared stories, played her songs, and found comfort in one another's presence, all beneath the gaze of the sea that Sinéad once called home,' Tara said. The centrepiece for the day was the memorial bench, crafted by the members of Bray and Avoca Men's Sheds last year, as a lasting testament to Bray's adopted daughter. It was unveiled then at The Martello to mark the first anniversary of the beloved singer's death and has remained there ever since. The project was first handed over to members of the the Avoca Men's shed, who following the commission, set about crafting the bench of larch wood, expertly cutting and shaping it to produce a beautiful tribute to the singer. Carved out on either side of a centre circle are two olive branches representing peace, with five beams to the rear of the bench signifying a musical staff and the title of the singer's anthem 'Nothing Compares 2 U' carved out on the front rail of the seat. Members of the Bray Shed then too over, adding two musical notes/clefs on either side of the centre circle to represent music, sanded the bench and added a plate bearing the words 'Nothing But Love'. 'A special thank you goes to the incredible men of Bray Men's Shed,' Tara continued, 'who attended for the second year in a row. Their beautiful memorial bench, crafted in Sinéad's honour, stands as a lasting tribute to her spirit. I am forever grateful for their kindness, dedication, and the care they put into this meaningful gesture. 'My heartfelt thanks also to John Duggan of The Martello Hotel for his continued support and hospitality. This annual gathering wouldn't be the same without the warmth and generosity of the Bray community. Also to Leigh Peres who travelled all the way from Australia and helped to organise so much on the day. Sinéad, you are missed and always remembered,' she said. Bray Men's Shed said they were 'delighted and honoured to be asked to create an appropriate memorial for Sinead'. "The bench was created with considerable help from our friends in the Avoca shed,' they said, and wanted to remind the community that they provide a venue for men to talk and connect while engaging in many hobbies, like carpentry, wood carving, metal work and many others.
Indianapolis Star
2 days ago
- Politics
- Indianapolis Star
New Indiana IREAD law sparks parent concern as student retention set to rise
Parents are stressed, and kids are coming home crying. These are the emotions more families say they're experiencing this summer because of a new law that will likely mean more third graders are kept from progressing to the fourth grade. The law that is affecting this year's rising fourth graders will hold back students who do not pass the state's standardized early literacy test, or IREAD, by the end of the third grade and don't meet one of the mandated exemptions. Some parents were left confused this summer as their second- or third-graders were told they have to go to summer school to improve their reading due to the new law; others think holding them back will do more harm than good. One parent who spoke to IndyStar said that their rising third grader is dealing with stress and anxiety over passing the test, especially while trying to get the proper help for their severe dyslexia. 'I don't know how, for an 8 or 9-year-old, that you tell them they're not good at reading and then make them do the year all over when it's already been a struggle for them, and then what, just tell them to try harder at school?' one parent told IndyStar. 'It's just putting kids in a bad education situation for the rest of their lives,' said the parent, who asked not to be named to protect their child's privacy. However, lawmakers like Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray, R-Martinsville, who supported the bill, say this is a necessary step to help young readers continue to grow in school. 'We must recognize we do kids a much bigger disservice when our schools advance students who are not ready to move on in their studies,' Bray told IndyStar. 'Kids learn to read and then read to learn, so ensuring our Hoosier students are prepared for their next level of education is absolutely critical.' Educational experts often cite third grade as a pivotal point in a student's life, where, if foundational reading skills aren't mastered, it could lead them to be academically behind for the rest of their lives. Final scores for this year's IREAD results won't be released until August, but schools are already anticipating the need to adjust staffing and classroom sizes as more students are held back. Indiana schools have historically had the authority to hold students back if they don't feel that they're ready to advance, but the state has been increasingly promoting students over the past decade, according to state data. According to the Indiana Department of Education's third-grade literacy data, in 2012, the state promoted just 4.7% of its third graders who didn't pass IREAD, but in 2023, that had grown to 17% being promoted. This trend also follows national data, where from 2000-2016, retention rates have been dropping. Wayne Township schools for the 2023-24 school year saw about 65% of its third graders pass IREAD, the third-worst proficiency rate among Marion County's 11 school districts. However, in the 2022-23 school year, they allowed 29% of third graders who didn't pass IREAD to continue to the fourth grade. Under the law passed last year, if a student meets one of these exemptions, they can move on to fourth grade: Some English language learning students will also get an exemption from being retained, at least for the next two school years. This year, House Bill 1499 was passed, which allows schools whose third-grade population is comprised of at least 50% English language learners can register those students as exempt from retention if they are unable to pass IREAD. However, this exemption will only last until the start of the 2027-28 school year. This could impact an estimated 550 third-grade English language learners across 25 public schools in Indiana, according to the bill's fiscal note. For this upcoming school year, Wayne Township anticipates needing additional third-grade class sections at two of its 11 elementary schools. 'All students who don't pass IREAD this summer will participate in targeted instruction and intervention next year,' said Jeannine Templeman, Wayne Township's chief communications officer. Indianapolis Public Schools saw the lowest IREAD proficiency rates among Marion County's districts in 2024 at 59%. However, IPS Communications Director Alpha Garrett told IndyStar that they are not concerned about overcrowding in its third grade classrooms for the upcoming school year. Garrett said they are concerned about how IREAD has become more 'high-stakes' in nature and what kind of impact it will have on students' and staff's experiences. One IPS parent whose son did not pass IREAD in second grade told IndyStar she felt misled because of the school's emphasis on getting students to pass it before being held back is required. 'They made it seem like it was mandatory that they pass in the second grade, when really they're testing them on things that aren't even in his grade level yet,' the IPS parent said, who is not being named over concerns that their child would be bullied. 'They made it seem so scary, and didn't explain it well enough that it would be OK if he didn't pass this year.' The IPS parent's son has been getting extra help in summer school this year, but continues to feel anxious about what this test will mean for him heading into third grade. Garrett said that students who are retained in third grade will be placed with a teacher state evaluations show is a "highly effective" educator. Mandatory summer school for third graders who don't pass IREAD was also included in the legislation that requires retention, along with two other chances to pass the test before fourth grade. However, for the next two years, the state will be working with less money for summer school as the budget for 2025-27 allocated around $17.4 million for both years, which is around a $918,000 annual decrease from the 2023-25 budget. In total, Hoosier students now have five chances to pass the test throughout the second and third grades. If students pass IREAD in the second grade, they do not have to retake it. The Indiana Department of Education said schools will be given priority reimbursement for summer school based on how many second- and third-grade students they're serving. Republican leadership in the House and Senate also point to the $170 million from the Lilly Endowment given to the state in 2022 to specifically help with early literacy, as well as a new $100 million allocated to the state department under the 'Freedom and Opportunity in Education Fund' for the 2025-27 budget. Secretary of Education Katie Jenner said during the session that some of the $100 million could go toward summer learning. But there is competition for that money, since Jenner also plans to use it for expanding ILEARN checkpoint testing, teacher recruitment efforts, student data tracking efforts and literacy training for teachers, among other things. The Indy Summer Learning Labs is another tool more schools across the state are using for summer learning, with now over 140 sites across the state serving over 12,000 students. The learning labs support five weeks of free or low-cost summer school during June and July for rising students in first through ninth grades. The labs dedicate the morning hours of the day to learning math and English language arts, and the afternoon is open for extracurricular activities. Liberty Grove Schools at Elder Diggs School 42, an IPS innovation charter school, is one of those learning lab sites this year. The labs are supported by funding from the state's Learning Recovery Grants and are run by the Mind Trust. The Indianapolis-based education organization is typically known for its work around curating charter schools, but it also provides the curriculum and other financial support for lab sites. Liberty Grove founder, Morrise Harbour, wishes they could invite all 250 of their K-6 students to summer school, but they could only afford to offer it to 75. 'We have to offer as many opportunities to our students as possible," Harbour told IndyStar. "Now, they don't have to be mandated to come, but what we're saying is 'if we can afford for you to come, then come.'' Harbour said additional staffing to support retained students may be needed, but they won't know until IREAD results are finalized. This summer, they had 17 third graders retaking IREAD and therefore had to attend the mandatory summer schooling, but 19 other third graders chose to join them at the summer learning lab. Since Liberty Grove Schools opened on the west side in the 2022-23 school year, they've been able to raise their IREAD scores from 29.3% proficient in 2023 to 41% in 2024. The school says they've been using the "science of reading" practices in the curriculum since the start, so adjusting to the retention law has been easier for them than maybe other schools. Every school in the state was required to adopt an early literacy curriculum that supports the science of reading from the state-approved list for the 2024-25 school year. The science of reading is a body of research that focuses on how brains learn to read, with a heavy emphasis on phonics and phonemic awareness, along with teaching fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Harbour thinks that, along with more money, more time to get districts adjusted to the law would help schools like his that serve predominantly low-income students. For the 2024-25 school year, all of Liberty Grove's students qualified for free and reduced lunch. 'Any change of this magnitude where it almost seems like it's all or nothing, in a lot of ways, it takes time,' Harbour said. 'So, obviously, just some time for schools to adjust.' While the state will see more third graders being held back starting this year, Indiana overall has seen growth in its reading proficiency rates in recent years. Overall, statewide IREAD proficiency rates have been steadily increasing since scores dropped in 2021, which is a different story than the 10 years prior, which saw scores steadily declining since the test was first administered in 2013. Last year's scores showed that 82.5% of third graders were reading at grade level, which is still far off from pre-COVID levels of 87.3%. Indiana's fourth-grade reading scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the "nation's report card," also showed good results, with Indiana's average score improving for the first time since 2015. Indiana ranks sixth in the nation in fourth-grade reading proficiency. Some Indianapolis parents are even taking the chance to become trained in the kind of curriculum that educators are using to teach reading to young students. Elisah Smith is a parent to a rising fourth grader in Warren Township and also participated in the RISE Indy Freedom Readers program, which trains parents for 16 weeks on the science of reading practices. Smith's daughter was able to pass IREAD, in part she says, because the teachers at her Warren Township elementary school were transparent about the specifics around the test. "I think the more transparent you are with parents, the less stress it is for the kiddos, and letting the kiddos know that this is their opportunity to take it, but there will also be other opportunities, too, if you don't pass it," Smith told IndyStar. Smith plans to volunteer in Warren Township to help other young readers once the school year begins. Advice that she would give other parents who have a child struggling to read is to seek help. "Don't be afraid, and don't keep that a secret," Smith said. "There are literacy programs out there and we are not here to judge the parent. We are here to make sure that the student is successful."
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
‘Unbelievably poignant' Katie Taylor message strengthened Lions' will to win
Jack Conan's seasonal finale has delivered in spades. After captaining Leinster to the United Rugby Championship title, the Lions ever-present from four years ago was in ebullient form after Saturday's 29-26 win sealed a series triumph that he will remember forever. The result was all that mattered as Conan reflected on an imperfect training week and what he felt was a far-from-perfect display by himself and the Lions, but one that had additional meaning for the man from Bray. 'We were not at our best by any measure, but physically the lads dug in unbelievably well,' said Conan, who turns 33 on Tuesday. He revealed: 'We had a video from Katie Taylor earlier in the week and it was unbelievably poignant and powerful. It spoke about being prepared to win with skill, but be ready to win by will. 'I think that was something that summed up today massively because we were not at our best at all. Pretty disappointing how we played, but we played for 80 minutes. READ MORE 'Barry ( Hugo Keenan ) getting over the line last minute was just unbelievable. I think the celebrations and the crack and changing room, if we went out and we won by 20, it wouldn't be the same,' he admitted. 'Everyone's just over the moon. To be part of a Lions winning series team is just incredibly special. I feel incredibly humbled and honoured to be part of it all. Not my best game, but a lot of us weren't at the races at all, but we stuck in there. You can't fault the effort. I thought the defensive sets we put in, just whacking people and just staying in there, was unbelievable. I think everyone loved it, even the English and the Scottish boys and the Welsh boy — Jack Conan 'It's something that will go down in history,' he continued, random thoughts pouring out amid the immediate euphoria of reaching one of the true highs of his rugby career. 'They weren't writing the history books about how s**t we were, but they'll say that we won and that's all that matters. Just so special to be part of it.' Jack Conan (left) and Tadhg Furlong celebrate the Lions' victory over Australia in Saturday's second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Photograph: Martin Keep/AFP via Getty Images Taylor's message was particularly poignant for Conan given they both hail from Bray. 'Massively. Huge. Someone to come from the town I'm from, I'm incredibly proud of where I come from and I know Katie is as well. She's gone on to achieve incredible feats in the boxing world and to be such a superstar and be just incredibly humble and driven and knock it out of herself is something that we kind of leant on as well. We knew that Australia are a hugely proud nation and they showed it today in spades. 'They were unbelievable, they really were, but we just stuck in it for 80 minutes and [I'm] just incredibly proud of the effort from the lads. I know things didn't click and we weren't flowing properly, but we were getting off the line, trying to hit people, trying to make it count every chance we got. And I think we did that and that's why we got the result in the end.' [ Australia head coach Joe Schmidt unhappy at match officials over Jac Morgan clearout Opens in new window ] It transpired that the Irish performance coach Gary Keegan, who is also part of the extensive Lions backroom team, was the key figure in asking Taylor to provide a motivational video. 'Gary Keegan would have been very close with her and helped her through her amateur career into professional career; he's the link there. It meant a lot to me being from the same place and seeing her on the world stage, but I think everyone loved it, even the English and the Scottish boys and the Welsh boy. It resonated with everyone. 'It was unbelievably poignant, it was class. It really hit home for us, it was brilliant.' Conan was one of a record nine Irish players in the starting line-up who contributed to this series-clinching second Test win, as well as Rónan Kelleher and James Ryan off the bench, with three of them among the Lions try scorers. In another ever-lasting image, Keenan was the match-winner. Putting down one of the two cans of Guinness he had been holding in each hand, Conan said of Keenan: 'Delighted for him, because he had a bit of a rocky start to the campaign with the sickness that derailed him for a while and it's a testament to his professionalism and staying in it. I was delighted for him. Jack Conan came close to scoring a try in the series-clinching victory against Australia. Photograph:'Now in saying that, I would have liked it more if he gave me the ball on the edge and I scored the try,' joked Conan, who helped give Keenan the space to beat Len Ikitau on his outside shoulder by holding his depth. 'No, delighted for Barry, I probably would have dropped it like the other one,' added Conan, in reference to the moment early on when James Slipper's tackle dislodged the ball from his grasp as he was diving over the line. 'No, it was knocked out of my hands lads. 'I was shouting for it, but Barry goes and scores a try. I've no complaints. If he bottled it there in that moment, I would have killed him and kicked the arse off him afterwards, but that was great.' Leinster being the bulk suppliers had generated quite a bit of debate, but Farrell's selections had been vindicated. 'As a Leinster man you're normally on the other end of it where you don't win them, so it was nice to be on the other side of it for once,' admitted Conan with a smile. 'Yeah it's class, just the feeling afterwards, the celebrations. Big Tadge (Tadhg Furlong) was giving it 90 on the sideline which was class and it was just unreal, part of a Lions winning series is just so special, to have played two 80 minutes. I'm not sure if I'll be playing next week after my performance but we'll see what happens, but yeah, absolutely class. 'You can't take these things away from people; [they] go down in history. I know people don't have the best things to say about Australia but I thought they were class today, they were unbelievable, they played above themselves. 'We saw Valetini and big Willie Skelton come back into the side, they were unbelievable. They made a huge difference and we struggled with it at times. A little bit high in the contacts, a little bit soaking, whatever else. But it doesn't matter, we got there in the end, didn't we. 'The win's a win. Series win; Lions series winner. You can't take that away from us, so I'm delighted for everyone. Delighted for the coaching staff, delighted for the lads who played, the lads who didn't play because everyone's played their part. Roll on the celebrations, roll on next week and one more 80 minutes to go and then a bit of well-earned time off.'
BreakingNews.ie
6 days ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Planners refuse permission for 650 new homes on outskirts of Bray
One of the country's largest construction firms has been refused planning permission for 650 new homes on the outskirts of Bray, Co Wicklow, on several grounds including uncertainty over public transport services and concern it would add to urban sprawl. An Coimisiún Pleanála rejected an application by Cosgrave Property Group for permission to construct 241 houses and 409 apartments plus a creche on a 78.5-hectare site off Berryfield Lane in the Fassaroe area of the north Wicklow town. Advertisement The plans also provided for a neighbourhood centre, a new 2.4-kilometre road connecting the N11 to Ballyman Road, a new pedestrian and cycle route including bridge between the N11 and Dargle Road Upper as well as 15.3 hectares of a district park and open spaces which would include a shop and café kiosk. Most of the site, which is located to the west of the N11/M11 Dublin-Wexford route, is currently in agricultural use. There are also five former council landfill sites within the lands of the proposed development. The project was the first phase of a comprehensive development plan for the Fassaroe area which saw the Cosgrave group set out a long-term proposal to construct over 2,200 residential units over four phases up to 2040, subject to planning permission. Advertisement The commission – formerly known as An Bord Pleanála – said the plans did not adhere to the planning principles on compact growth, sequential development and phasing which are set out in the Wicklow County Development Plan 2022-2028. It noted the site's peripheral location and distance from Bray town centre and the lack of public transport serving the area as well as the excess of residential zoning in Fassaroe and the availability of other residential-zoned land for development in built-up parts of the town. The commission also observed that there was uncertainty about the precise arrangements for the delivery of bus services to serve the proposed development based on information provided by the National Transport Authority. It also rejected the application by the Cosgrave group on the basis that it would 'constitute an insufficient and unacceptable level of density'. Advertisement The commission said the plans would not secure compact growth and would encourage urban sprawl and could result in a car-dependent development. 'It would not represent an efficient or sustainable use of strategically zoned land,' it concluded. The application, which was made under the fast-track process for strategic housing developments, had been submitted in April 2022. Wicklow County Council was supportive of the development subject to a number of planning conditions. Advertisement Explained Housing, health, military: What does the National... Read More The local authority claimed it was consistent with the zoning objectives for the area and would provide a suitable layout in terms of residential amenity, visual impact and recreational infrastructure. An Bord Pleanála had previously refused planning permission by the same developer for a development of 658 units and neighbourhood centre on the same site in 2017 over concerns about public transport services and its potential adverse impact on the N11/M11, other businesses in Bray town centre and the Balllyman Glen Special Area of Conservation. The Cosgrave group claimed there had been considerable further action since that time which had clarified that Fassaroe would be served by a public bus route. It stated that the development would have served as 'an appropriate expansion to Bray town while also providing sufficient amenities for us by the wider population in the area.'
Irish Times
18-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Penney's Irish parent profits top €2m per day last year
The company which operates Penneys in Ireland made an average pretax profit of more than €2 million per day. New accounts lodged by Primark Ltd show pretax profits more than doubled from €416.63 million to €881.5 million in the 12 months to the end of September 14th. However, the impact of poor weather conditions during Summer 2024 contributed to revenues from the Penneys Irish store network dipping marginally from €744.5 million to €741.7 million. The annual revenues equate to €14.26 million of sales per week for the 38 unit Irish strong network of Penneys stores. READ MORE Overall revenues at Primark Ltd last year increased by 5 per cent from €3.91 billion to €4.1 billion and revenues were made up of €2.1 billion of revenues from intercompany supplies of inventory; Primark Way franchise income of €1.25 billion and the remaining €741.7 million from Irish retail revenues. The Primark Way franchise is a business format which is developed and run from Ireland and provides Primark intellectual property, know-how and services to Primark businesses overseas. The directors state that 'Irish store trading performance was flat in the current year with trade stronger in the first half of the year'. 'Trade in the second half of the year was impacted by adverse weather conditions,' they added. Still, 'the opening of the Bray store in Summer 2024 negated this somewhat'. A spokesman for Primark said: 'in Ireland, we're continuing our multi-yearmultiyeart programme, including recent refurbishments of Penneys O'Connell Street in Dublin and Limerick city, with further store redevelopments planned in the coming months for stores in Portlaoise, Limerick, and Ennis.' The Primark spokesman said: 'We had a positive year in 2023-2024 with increased turnover and profit due to strong trading across our key growth markets in Europe and the US as well as steady performance from our Irish stores and the addition of a new store in Bray. The accounts start that the €250 million investment programme over the coming years will create an additional 1,000 jobs and increase selling space in Ireland by an estimated 20 per cent. The directors state that a new distribution facility for Newbridge, Co Kildare represents an investment of €75 million 'which is due within the next year'. The directors state that the overall Irish investment 'reinforces the company's long term commitment to cities, towns and local communities across the country'. The accounts disclose that the company paid out dividends of €809 million. The company recorded a post tax profit of €771 million after incurring a corporation tax charge of €109.9 million. Primark opened its first store in Dublin in 1969 under the name Penneys with the firm aiming to have 530 stores open globally by the end of 2026. The profit last year takes account of non-cash depreciation costs of €86.53 million and non-cash amortisation costs of €45.35 million. Numbers employed by the firm last year decreased slightly from 7,064 to 7,054 made up of 5,033 retail assistants, 595 retail managers and 1,426 'central'. Staff costs increased from €300.19 millon to €319.03 million. Directors ast year received variable payroll amounts of €5.12 million, €4.2 million under long term incentive plans while €950,000 was also paid out for compensation for loss of office. At the end of September 14th last, Primark Ltd's accumulated profits stood at €1.6 billion Ends
