A Co Tyrone building company, at the centre of a scandal in the Republic that has seen 1200 children left without a school after a structural assessment found the buildings unsafe, has said they want an urgent meeting with the Education Minister.
Minister for Education Joe McHugh said yesterday that the three schools have been forced to close due to concerns that walls could collapse.
He said inspectors were checking to see whether there were sufficient number of wall ties in place and also whether timber frames are bolted to steel girders or not.
The minister said there were "a lot of inefficiencies here and we have to follow them on safety grounds".
He said that if necessary people would be brought in from London this weekend to ensure that all schools built by the company are assessed over the weekend and coming week.
Western Building Systems, based in Co Tyrone constructed more than 40 schools, currently undergoing or awaiting structural examinations.
Three schools Ardgillan Community College, Tyrellstown Educate Together National School and St Luke's National School, Mulhuddart have been closed on the basis of structural concerns.
WBS said the compliance process which regulated the building of these schools included on-site inspections by Department appointed inspectors every two weeks, plus monthly on-site inspection meetings with the Department's inspectors.
It says that projects were only deemed concluded once a completion certificate was issued by the Department's inspectors - as was the case, it says, in these schools.
