Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter because it gives me the opportunity to set out to the House the position regarding second level places in Carrigtwohill and the wider east Cork area. This is a matter that the Minister of State, Deputy Stanton, has raised with me on a number of occasions. It is an issue that Deputy Sherlock and his colleague from east Cork, Deputy O'Keeffe, continue to keep on the radar. I realise and understand the importance of this issue.

Major new residential developments in a school planning area have the potential to alter demand in that area. In that regard, as part of the demographic exercises, my Department engages with each of the local authorities to obtain the up-to-date information on significant new residential development in each area. This is necessary to ensure that schools infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes. For school planning purposes, Carrigtwohill is located in the Midleton-Carrigtwohill school planning area. Where demographic data indicates that additional provision is needed, as the Deputy is no doubt aware, the delivery of such additional provision can be provided through utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools, extending the capacity of a school or schools, or the provision of a new school or schools.

As the Deputy will be aware, in April 2018 the Government announced plans for the establishment of 42 new schools over the next four years, 2019 to 2022, including three new primary schools and one new post-primary school in County Cork. While the announcement did not include a new school for the Midleton-Carrigtwohill school planning area, or the wider east Cork area, the requirement for new schools is kept under ongoing review and, in particular, has regard for the increased roll-out of housing provision as outlined in Project Ireland 2040.

The following new schools were established in recent years to serve the Midleton-Carrigtwohill school planning area. Carrigtwohill community college, a new 1,000 pupil post-primary school was established in temporary accommodation in 2016. Scoil Chlíodhna community national school, a new 16-classroom primary school, was established in temporary accommodation in 2015. A campus development in Carrigtwohill, when complete, will accommodate three new schools: Carrigtwohill community college, with 1,000 pupils plus a three-classroom special education needs base; Scoil Chlíodhna, with 24 classrooms plus a three-classroom special education needs base; and Scoil Mhuire primary school, with 24 classrooms plus a three-classroom special education needs base with a total population of approximately 2,200 pupils. The site is over 10 ha in size which includes a road network. This will be the single biggest and most expensive schools campus ever built by the Department.

The building project for the Carrigtwohill campus is being delivered under the Department's design and build programme. This delivery programme uses a professional external project management team to progress the project through the stages of architectural planning, tendering and construction.

Carrigtwohill community college is currently in interim accommodation and a planning application for the permanent accommodation campus was lodged in May 2019. A request for further information was received in August 2019. The Department's project management team is actively working on this request for further information. It is expected that a response to the local authority's request for further information will be submitted shortly.

In February 2019, the school was approved for rental of additional temporary accommodation of a 1 x 100 sq. m science lab and three mainstream classrooms to cater for additional enrolments. All of that accommodation has now been installed.

Planning has also been secured for an additional two classrooms to facilitate enrolments for the 2020-21 academic year and these will be installed during the summer holiday in 2020.

Representatives of Cork Education and Training Board, ETB, which is patron of Carrigtwohill community school, recently met with officials from my Department regarding the provision of further additional accommodation. The ETB and the Department will continue to engage regarding the provision of this further accommodation. I understand that officials of Cork ETB met with parents on 21 November 2019 to update them on the accommodation position for the school and I understand that a further meeting is due to take place in December 2019.

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