Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 26 September 2018

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs

Tackling Childhood Obesity: Discussion (Resumed)

9:30 am

Mr. Eamonn Cusack:

I will take that one. We have to balance it with classroom spaces. Our priority is to provide seats for bums, if the Deputy knows what I mean. Also, as part of any building project that we deliver, be it a refurbishment project or a new school building, we provide a sports hall or, in primary schools, a general purpose, GP, room. In the schedule of accommodation that is given for post-primary schools or primary schools, the biggest single piece of infrastructure is the PE hall or, in the case of a primary school, the GP room. We look at PE as an important part of all new buildings or major refurbishments we are providing, and we bring the facilities in those schools up to the norm we provide for any new school.