The mother of twin brothers was shocked after one was accepted into a secondary school while the other was rejected.
Adri O’Dea said the separation of her 12-year-old sons Cian and Aidan has caused major stress at home.
She added: “I refuse to send them to two different schools. You could say I have one child in the school but I don't.
“I don’t have a place for my sons until I have a place for the two of them.”
She was speaking after Cian was accepted by Boyne Community School in Trim, Co Meath but Aidan was refused due to oversubscription.
Ms O’Dea was shocked to receive two letters from the school outlining the situation.
She said the sixth class students, who live outside Trim and attend St Michael’s National School, are devastated.
Ms O’Dea added there was no indication of any issues in relation to oversubscription during the application process.
She said: “On Saturday I took Cian for the entrance assessment while Aidan sat in the car. He feels the school doesn’t want him. It has created a difficult situation for us as a family.
“The thoughts of them being torn apart is too much to bear, they do everything together.
“We sent in the application form on the open day so we were in plenty of time. I indicated on both of their forms they were twins.
“There wasn’t any mystery around the fact they were twins. I got home to two letters from the school one Friday – one to say Cian had been accepted and the other to say Aidan had not.
“I wrote a letter to the board of management and said I assumed this was an error and I wanted to bring it to their attention.
“On the Monday morning we found out Aidan was number 59 on the waiting list. When I rang the school I was just told it was unfortunate and I should apply to another school.
“We have written additional letters to the school and the board of management but have not received a response. We have hit a stone wall.
“They did a lottery and basically gave everyone a number so that’s how it ended up that one got in and the other didn’t. There was no consideration given to the fact they were twins.”
Parents were not told at any point that this was going to be an issue, according to South African-born Ms O’Dea.
She added: “The place was thronged at the open day and we asked if we needed to be concerned regarding the number of places available but were told, ‘No, as long as you have the application in on time you will be fine’.
“Nobody realised there were 23 feeder schools. It is mind-boggling how they have allowed this to happen.”
A Department of Education and Skills spokesperson said: “The department is in ongoing discussions with the school authorities.”
Boyne Community School has been contacted for comment.
