Educational researchers agree that our current mainstream school system does not align with meeting the needs of children. We can no longer judge children's abilities in standardized testing, which ignores their creativity as well as talents and often makes them feel isolated, stupid and worthless. Especially children with additional needs are not nourished in the long outdated school system. In most European countries progressive schools such as Montessori, Sudbury, Homeschools and Waldorf Schools have long been a welcoming space for children to flourish, to gain self confidence and to become independent and happy citizens. Unfortunately these schools in Ireland depend fully on fundraising and fees alone because they do not receive a single cent from the Irish government. Teachers often partially work for free, because they believe in the significance of these educational establishments, and more importantly in the children's right to self-direct their learning, no matter of their financial background. It is time to allow parents and children to choose how their personalities will develop healthily, without a religious indoctrination, by letting them learn in an alternative non-denominational school. Please add your name to this petition to collectively ask our new Minister for Education, Joe McHugh, to spread the allocated funds for education more fairly by including alternative schools such as Montessori, Sudbury or Steiner, as well as homeschooling in the state funding, so that no child has to pay fees in order to grow there. With good hopes for the future, Carolin, a former teacher

Rents in Ireland are at an all-time high, with the national average standing at €1,334 a month. Yet even these staggering figures don’t tell the whole story, because many tenants are being charged additional upfront fees by letting agents and extortionate deposits equal to two or three times the monthly rent. This is a brutal and exploitative way of screening renters with the result that low-income workers and social welfare recipients are effectively locked out of the market. Scotland successfully banned letting agent fees in 2012 and England and Wales are set to do the same early next year, and also introduce a cap on deposits. The Dublin Tenants’ Association is demanding the same from our Government. Sign the petition to show your support!

This would provide free and safe drinking water to the public. It would be an enhancement to our public amenities. It would cut down on single use plastic bottles and encourage a culture of re-use.

Those begging for change on the streets will now have an easier way of earning cash. By picking up litter ! Let's clean the streets of Limerick .Be a part of our campaign. Countries in mainland Europe have already introduced this kind of infrastructure. Let's pioneer it for Ireland Lets sustain our development through recycling.

The average cost of seeing a GP in Ireland now is €60 - and the cost can be as high as €80 in cities like Dublin. People are ignoring illness and not accessing care due to the cost of seeing a GP. This is not acceptable in a country like Ireland - whilst GP care is free in other comparable countries like Britain, Canada and Germany - or costs as little as €7.50 in other EU countries like France. It doesn't make economic sense either - illness costs the Irish economy hundreds of millions a year, and delayed diagnoses mean poorer outcomes and more intensive treatments for patients. We can stop this together - which is why the Minister for Health must move immediately to make GP care free for all.

Monaghan County Council could be fined because it hasn’t spent any Government funding on traveller accommodation. It’s one of 9 local authorities not to drawn down any funding allocated for it to provide the accommodation, Longford and Westmeath are also included. Over €1.2 million in funding earmarked for the provision of the accommodation has gone unspent.

Dear Department of Justice and the members of the Irish Court System, Women in Ireland are afraid to report sexual assault as they feel they will either be judged or traumatised by going through the system. This current system oppresses women and puts the onus on them to prove they were not, in some way, giving the aggressor the wrong idea. They are questioned on their state of mind, their physical state, how much they had to drink, how they spoke to them, and most of all on what they wore on the night in question. Just this week we heard about a barrister asking for a teenage girl's underwear to be considered as an indicator of her consent. "Does the evidence out-rule the possibility that she was attracted to the defendant and was open to meeting someone and being with someone? You have to look at the way she was dressed. She was wearing a thong with a lace front," This is a blatant attempt to reframe the narrative and hope to shed a bad light on the victim. We must not allow this language to be used in our courts and allow suggestion and assumptions to rule the outcome of a case like this. Women are being re-traumatised by the actions of solicitors in the Irish Courts. Do the right thing and protect the victims of sexual assault by not allowing the clothing they wore on the night of their assault be used against them. We need the Irish courts system to defend the victim, not the aggressor, and show empathy towards them. We need to be able to trust that the justice system in Ireland supports victims and right now they are falling very short of that. This case and that of the Belfast rape trial show just how hard it is for a victim to be shown any respect through the course of a trial. We must hold ourselves to a higher standard and treat victims with dignity and respect. We cannot accept outcomes like this. We must stand up and be counted where it matters. #ThisIsNotConsent

Why are Irish taxpayers paying two private companies – Turas Nua and Seetec to profit on Irish job seekers through the job activation scheme Job Path? Not only that but since June of this year, over 11,000 people have been referred to JobPath for a second time having already completed the scheme in full. Job seekers as Irish citizens deserve to be treated with respect and dignity as they continue with their efforts to find employment. Some job seekers need support, some can manage efforts independently. JobPath as a one size fits all programme cannot address the needs of all jobseekers and nor should it. Seasonal and part-time workers are also being forced to engage with JobPath while working and it is widely reported that Turas Nua and Seetec often demand details of employers. THIS NEEDS TO STOP.

The palm oil industry is linked to major issues such as deforestation, habitat degradation, climate change, animal cruelty and indigenous rights abuses in the countries where it is produced, as the land and forests must be cleared for the development of the oil palm plantations.

1. The most senior Garda in the country knowingly and deliberately smeared a serving Garda who raised the shortcomings in performance of other Gardai. 2. The State already funded the Tribunal to establish the facts and the facts have vindicated Garda McCabe. 3. For the State to then indemnify the guilty party is further persecuting the McCabe's and also means there is no consequence for the guilty party. 4. The Minister for Justice should review the former commissioners contract of employment to see what sanctions were possible for breach of contact for bringing the force into disrepute. If there is such a provision the State should then seek to review his retirement and pension arrangements and if necessary take action to recover costs borne by the State because of his scurrilous actions. 5. This sets a dangerous precedent, where employees of the State can ruin peoples lives with absolutely no consequence for their actions. The government say that this is being done on legal advice - I would strongly suggest getting a second opinion. The legal profession won't be on the hook for the costs if this goes unchallenged, it will be ordinary citizens of this state. A functioning police force is one of the cornerstones of a democracy. We expect better from the most senior police officer in the land.

Dublin City Council are set to bulldoze the Weaver Square Community Garden & Family Allotments from 31st December 2018. This is a serious concern for ALL residents of Dublin 8: 1. Dublin 8 is being subjected to an onslaught of short-term, high-density property development (Hotels, student accommodation) at the expense of the existing community. Over 2000 such units have been constructed in 2018 in this district alone. 2. Dublin 8, a high-density urban community, has the lowest amount of green space per m2 in Dublin. Now it will have even less! 3. This is the latest Dublin 8 community resource lost to property development in 12 months. We have already lost Dublin Food Co-Op, Green Door Market & Flea Markets. There is also uncertainty over the future of Meath St, Liberty Market, St Theresas & now Players Wills site developments. 4. DCC are reneging on written commitments to keep the Weaver Square community garden/allotments. 5. There are alternative vacant DCC sites that could be used for development without destroying this valuable Green Space. 6. Over 300 people benefit directly from the community garden & allotments on a weekly basis. These social, health, environmental & educational benefits will stop on 31st December. The garden & allotments are used by schools, pensioners, community groups & families.

There are children without a school placement option if this SNU does not open in the new school year. There is a large community of families with children with autism who will need this in the future. We have waited long enough. This was sanctioned in 2015.