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

I thank Deputy Coppinger for raising the matter again. We had discussions previously about how bad planning has had a major affect on her area in the context of the provision of education places, given the number of houses that have been built there. I welcome the opportunity to discuss this matter again. Deputy Coppinger has argued that previous governments have made promises but this Government has not done that. We have tried to reform the system of delivery of education places, which hopefully will result in the correction of the shortage of places in most areas such as Dublin West and other key places.

Again, I thank her for raising the matter as it gives me the opportunity to remind the House of the significant challenges facing the Department in terms of meeting increasing demand for pupil places throughout the country in the coming years and to clarify the current position on the major capital projects for St. Patrick's national school, Corduff and St. Mochta's national school.

As the Deputy will be aware, significant capital funding will be invested in our education system through the Government's €27 billion capital programme announced in September, with some €3.8 billion being invested in education projects. The new construction plan for 2016 to 2021 aims to prioritise new building projects and major extensions, including special schools, in areas where significant demographic need has been established.

The Deputy will also be aware that the country has experienced an unprecedented population increase in recent years. This demographic growth has posed a significant challenge for the provision of school places and the challenge is set to continue. My Department's demographic projections show that enrolment at primary level will continue to increase substantially until at least 2019 while the demand for additional school places in the post-primary sector will continue to increase until at least 2022. The new plan will give my Department the capacity to deliver some 19,000 additional permanent primary school places required by 2019 and 43,000 additional post-primary school places required by 2022. The new plan also provides for devolved funding for additional classrooms for schools outside the plan where an immediate enrolment need has been identified, such as the appointment of an additional teacher. In addition, the plan prioritises projects that have a major deficit of mainstream accommodation capacity for current enrolments, require major refurbishment and replacement of poor accommodation and to provide additional accommodation to meet increases in enrolments.

I wish to advise the Deputy that both major building projects referenced are currently at an advanced stage of architectural planning, stage 2b, which includes applications for planning permission, a fire safety certificate, a disability access certificate and the preparation of tender documents. All statutory approvals have been secured. The design team has recently completed tender documents for the St. Patrick's junior and senior national schools project to provide the new accommodation on the existing site, with stage 2b approved. The project for St. Mochta's national school entails the construction of an extension to the existing building and refurbishment. The design team is in the process of completing tender documents.

While it was not possible to include the projects referred to by the Deputy in the current five-year building programme, I wish to advise the Deputy that the projects will be available for consideration for the new six-year plan that we intend to announce shortly. I know Deputy Coppinger would like me to tell her today that they are included in that plan but I am not in a position to do so. Much research has gone into making decisions and the plan is very close to completion. It will be announced in the coming weeks and hopefully if, as Deputy Coppinger has said, the need is very clear, that will put those projects ahead of the game. They are in a good position to be included in the next plan and hopefully we will be able to deliver on that. The plan is all about trying to respond to the need for additional accommodation. Hopefully the two schools referred to by Deputy Coppinger will be included but I cannot confirm that now. I wish I could give her a definitive answer today but I cannot.

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