Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy McEntee for raising this matter and giving me an opportunity to outline the current position regarding the application for a new building for Dunboyne College of Further Education, which is currently based at the business park in the town. As the Deputy is aware, Dunboyne College of Further Education was awarded stand-alone status by the Department in February 2015. It has been acknowledged that there was a long battle behind that. A great deal of good work was done by many people over the years to try to make sure that happened. I am glad that it has happened and that the great work which has been done at Dunboyne College of Further Education has been recognised. As Deputy McEntee has said, the college's catchment covers a massive area that is much bigger than County Meath. We are familiar with the great work that the college does and the presence it has. It is right and just that it has been given a chance to operate as a stand-alone college. I hope it can develop its numbers over time.

After the decision to award stand-alone status was made, the college was allocated a separate roll number for administrative purposes. This entitled the college to appoint a principal to the separately located post-leaving certificate college. This allowed the principal of St. Peter's College to concentrate on the second-level school. In making the application for stand-alone status, Louth and Meath Education and Training Board acknowledged the fiscal constraints which direct the Department's capital spending decisions in the context of any expectation that the application might have for capital investment by the Department. Subsequently, in granting stand-alone status last February, the Department advised the board that in view of the need to ensure every child has access to a physical school place, the main focus for capital investment in schools in the coming years will be the delivery of major and smaller school projects to meet demographic demands nationally. For that reason, according to the Department, it was not possible to give consideration for a dedicated new building for Dunboyne College of Further Education at that time.

Deputy McEntee outlined many of the reasons that a new building needs to be constructed. As a local Deputy, I share much of her understanding of the matter. It is a question of actually finding the capital budget. There is a great deal of pressure on the budget at primary and secondary levels. That is where much of the money will be concentrated in the near future. All applications for major capital funding, including Louth and Meath Education and Training Board's application for a dedicated new building for Dunboyne College of Further Education, must be assessed in the context of the competing demands on the Department's capital budget. The Deputy will be aware of the demographic challenge facing the education system. I will go through the numbers. Total pupil enrolments in primary and post-primary schools are expected to increase by approximately 107,000 between 2012 and 2019. This comprises an increase of over 70,000 at primary level and over 35,000 at post-primary level. It is projected that pupil numbers at post-primary level will continue to increase up to 2026 at least. That is as far as we can predict. The challenge for the Department is to ensure our school system at primary and post-primary levels is in a position to cater for increasing pupil numbers.

As the Deputy may be aware, the current five-year construction plan contains details of major projects, including new schools and extensions, that are planned to commence construction over the duration of the period of the plan. I hope there will be a new additional plan on that front as well. A nationwide demographic exercise is being carried out by the Department currently to identify the location and distribution of the additional projected pupil numbers and consequently the need for additional primary and post-primary accommodation in all our counties. The provision of this accommodation continues to be the Department's over-riding objective. That is where funds will be prioritised. Quite a high rent is being paid at Dunboyne College of Further Education. The security of having a place is also an issue. I am sure there is scope to look at other premises or come up with other initiatives using the same money. Maybe some other place could be rented. I think the current site is quite ideal and good. It is a question of having permanency. While we accept that this is an issue, we just do not have the capital budget at the moment. It is something that is well known in the Department. I hope that in the years to come, we will find some way to make it happen. As it stands, there is no capital money to assign to it.

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