Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post-primary levels, including children and young people with special educational needs, is a priority for the Department. Since 2020, as I have previously outlined to the Deputy opposite, my Department has invested approximately €4.8 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of more than 800 school building projects. Construction is currently under way on approximately 300 other projects, which include 30 new school buildings. These 300 projects currently under construction involve a total State investment of more than €1.2 billion.

More than €150 million has been invested in school infrastructure in County Galway in since this Government came into being, reflecting a strong focus on the alignment of school place availability with the significant residential development which has taken place across the area. As the Deputy has referenced, two new 1,000 pupil post-primary school buildings have been recently provided in Athenry, namely, Presentation College and Clarin College. These have provided significant additional capacity in the town. The Department’s ongoing demographic analysis has identified a requirement for further additional post-primary capacity in Athenry.

In that context, the Department has been engaging with the patron of Clarin College, to which the Deputy referred, regarding the proposed expansion of the school to cater for 1,500 students and six classes for children with special educational needs. This close engagement is considering the overall medium-term accommodation requirements at the school and the school’s more immediate accommodation needs to facilitate the required growth in enrolments over the coming school years. My officials met last week with the school principal and patron and had a very productive discussion on the phased delivery of additional accommodation for the school, taking account of school place needs over the coming years.

With respect to September 2024, the Athenry school planning area is one of a number of areas of enrolment pressure at post-primary level for which the Department has received data on applications for admissions. Updated data on offers and acceptances continue to be received as admissions processes transact. I want to acknowledge that the sharing of this data by the relevant schools has been very effective in the identification of school place requirements across the area.

See this speech in context