Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Tóibín for raising this because it is an issue that needs some understanding. The background to this issue is that in 2012, a group was formed to examine patronage. It recommended that the demand for patronage diversity should be met in areas of stable population by divesting patronage of existing schools where there was evidence of parental demand for change. This was a process of divesting patronage. As a result, surveys took place in 43 areas of stable growth. The demand was identified in 28 of those, including Trim. Trim Educate Together national school, ETNS, was established as a four-classroom school. This had its origins in a report on pilot surveys, which indicated that at least half a single-stream school, comprising four classrooms, was required to accommodate parental demand in the area.

Under the patronage divesting process, a school could be opened where a school building became or was due to become available as a result of amalgamation or closure of an existing school. That was the context in which this was to be done. In some areas, in responding to demand for diversity where existing patrons were unable to make school properties available, the Department also included an examination of properties held in public ownership. In the case of Trim ETNS, a property is being made available under the redress scheme. This will be refurbished to provide four classrooms and ancillary accommodation for the school.

All schools, irrespective of their location, have to operate within their available accommodation and manage annual pupil intake accordingly. The initial establishment of Trim ETNS as a four-classroom school, and the need to be cognisant of managing the available accommodation, has been reflected in the Department's engagement with the patron body, which is Educate Together. When the school raised the issue of expanding its enrolment, my Department invited Educate Together to submit a case for this to the Department. A case has been submitted by Educate together to further expand Trim Educate Together national school and four other schools under the patronage of Educate Together which opened under the same patronage divestment process. The four schools concerned are located in New Ross, Castlebar, Tuam and Tramore. These proposals are currently under consideration.

My Department is also carrying out a nationwide demographic exercise at primary and post-primary levels to identify the areas of demographic growth and determine where additional school accommodation is needed to plan for school provision nationwide. This work is almost complete. In this context, the outcome of the nationwide demographic exercise will provide input into consideration of the case submitted by Educate Together.

In response to the Deputy's rightful concern that the divestment process has been proceeding very slowly, I note that I am instituting a new patronage reconfiguration process. It is hoped this will accelerate the delivery of multidenominational and non-denominational schools to reach the target of 400 by 2030. Unlike the previous process, this plan will focus on live transfers in order that a school which transfers under this process will not be reliant on temporary accommodation. This new process aims to speed up matters. Deputy Tóibín rightly noted that Trim is a growing area and obviously, the demographic assessment will have to determine whether that is creating a demand for additional space. I reiterate we are evaluating the request by Educate Together.

To put this in a broader context, where one school in an area is very popular and another is not so popular, we do not fund the expansion of the popular school when the less popular one has a lot of empty places. That has been a general policy position. It is where there is need for spaces that we make provision for a new school. The Deputy will know that every single primary school that has been sanctioned in recent times has gone to a non-denominational patron. That is the model within which this has been carried out. We are hoping that the new patronage approach will speed this up because, as Deputy Tóibín says, there is an expressed willingness on all sides to see the transfer of patronage. Making that happen is the challenge.

See this speech in context