Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

I can confirm that the school to which the Deputy refers has applied to my Department for major capital funding.

All applications for large scale capital funding are assessed against published prioritisation criteria which were introduced in 2004 following consultation with the education partners. Under the criteria, each project is assigned a band rating which reflects the type of works required and the urgency attaching to them. There are four band ratings, with band 1 being the highest and band 4 the lowest. Projects are progressed in accordance with the band rating assigned to them and the availability of funding. The application from this school has been assessed in accordance with the criteria and assigned a band 1.1 rating.

In 2005, the school was selected as one which was suitable for delivery of its building project under the permanent accommodation scheme 2005 and the school authority was offered funding of €300,000 to build an extension. The school authority accepted this offer and proceeded with the planning of this project while, at the same time, appealing the amount allocated to the project under the scheme.

Subsequently, the school authority notified the Department that it had decided to withdraw from the scheme and requested that they be progressed to delivery by the traditional method. In January 2007, the school was notified that the long-term projected staffing would comprise a principal plus eight assistant mainstream class teachers. As the existing school site could not accommodate a new eight-classroom school, the patron offered adjacent parish land to accommodate the provision of a new eight-classroom school building.

The progression of all large scale building projects, including this project, from initial design stage through to construction will be considered in the context of my Department's multi-annual school building and modernisation programme. The Department is committed to providing suitable high quality accommodation for St. Catherine's national school. However, in light of current tight economic circumstances, and with competing demands on the capital budget, it is not possible to give an indicative timeframe for the progression of the project at this time. I have already arranged to meet local Oireachtas Members, including the Deputy, to discuss this project.

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