Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise this issue. It relates to the newly established Carpenterstown Educate Together national school. It is in Carpenterstown, of which I am a resident, but affects the broader area of Porterstown. The Minister will be familiar with the area where there were two schools, St. Patrick's in Diswellstown and St. Mochta's in Clonsilla. Last year in an emergency scenario the Department had to establish a new school, Scoil Choilm, which operates in temporary premises in Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown. That school will be moved to the Porterstown area and a planning application has been submitted. I recognise that and, although it is belated, I recognise the work the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, have done on this.

However, it is clear that there will very soon be a requirement for a fourth school. The three schools, Scoil Choilm, St. Mochta's and St. Patrick's, have 11 classes. Land is already zoned for the provision of at least another 1,100 houses in that area at Diswellstown and Porterstown and a proposal is very soon to be put forward for the zoning of a similar amount of land.

John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Ceann Comhairle)
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We cannot have conversations in the Visitors Gallery while Deputy Varadkar is making his contribution. This has been a recent development.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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There is no question that there is a demand for a fourth school in that area. Parents have the right to a choice in education. There is a Roman Catholic school and there will be a VEC school, but there is not a choice of Educate Together in that area. The nearest Educate Together is Castleknock Educate Together, which is full and turns away almost half the applicants. While I appreciate it is with the advisory body, I would like to hear the Minister indicate that such a school will be recognised and sanctioned as soon as possible.

I would like to raise St. Mochta's school in the same area. The Minister of State, Deputy Pat Carey, recently claimed in a response to Deputy Burton that the extension of the school has gone to architectural planning and I understand that is incorrect. The principal of the school has been in touch with me to say the information given by the Minister of State, Deputy Pat Carey, to Deputy Burton was incorrect and the extension has not gone to architectural planning. I would be interested to hear the Minister's comments on that.

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Deputy Varadkar for raising this matter and giving me the opportunity to outline to the House the actions being taken by the Department to address the school accommodation needs of the Porterstown, Caperterstown and Clonsilla areas of Dublin 15.

I am very conscious that the Dublin 15 area as a whole is one of the most rapidly growing areas in the country and, as a result, there has been a marked increase in the demand for primary school places. The Department is taking a number of measures to increase the capacity of existing schools in the area concerned along with the development of new schools to meet this growing demand. All building projects arising from these interventions are awarded a band one priority rating under the Department's prioritisation criteria for large-scale building projects to ensure that they are delivered as expeditiously as possible. With particular reference to the Porterstown, Carpenterstown and Clonsilla areas, a number of interventions have been made to ensure adequate school provision.

Three schools serve the area. St. Patrick's National School moved into a new 24-classroom school last year. This school facilitates an annual three stream intake, while St. Mochta's National School was expanded in 2006 to cater for an annual four-stream intake. The school planning section liaised closely with the local authority and these schools and determined that up to an additional 90 children would require junior places for September 2007. In that context a third school, Scoil Choilm, was opened in Diswellstown, Dublin 15 under the temporary patronage of the Roman Catholic Church in September 2007 and enrolled three streams of junior infants. The school is temporarily accommodated in a VEC-owned building, the Institute of Horology in Blanchardstown. Given the age of the children, transport has been made available.

As the Deputy will be aware, in December 2007 I announced that a new State model of community national school, under the patronage of County Dublin Vocational Education Committee, VEC, is to be piloted in the Phoenix Park Racecourse and Phibblestown from September 2008. In addition, Scoil Choilm is to transition to the new community national school model. Since then, following recent consultations with the school community, the temporary patron and County Dublin VEC, it has been agreed that Scoil Choilm should come under the new pilot patronage model arrangements from September 2008.

The new model has been developed following a period of consultation with all of the main education partners and church groups. As in the primary school system generally, the schools will operate under the management of an independent board of management. The VEC will be represented on the board of management as patron and will provide relevant practical management supports to the school. Arrangements will be in place to enable the VEC to meet its general financial accountability responsibilities. I also indicated that I would bring proposals to Government to provide necessary amending legislation to underpin the VEC role in the primary sector. Pending the enactment of the legislation, I, as Minister for Education and Science, will act as interim patron for the new schools.

Regarding the Carpenterstown Educate Together parents group that has been established, I understand that an application for recognition of a new school in Carpenterstown in September 2008 has been received by the new schools advisory committee, NSAC. No advice has been received from that group and therefore no decision has been taken yet on the number of new multi-denominational schools which will open in Fingal in the 2008-09 school year. However, Educate Together has lodged with the NSAC a number of notifications of intention to apply for the recognition of new schools in the north Dublin area for next September.

The NSAC is an independent advisory group established to process applications for the recognition of new primary schools and to make recommendations to me. I expect that the NSAC will produce its report in April 2008.

All options will be considered to ensure there are enough school places in September. Owing to the level of demand emanating from the Dublin 15 area, the need to make further provision at primary level in addition to that outlined by me is being kept under continuous review by the Department. I am confident that the measures outlined will assist in alleviating the immediate demand for school places in the area and I thank the Deputy for allowing me the opportunity to respond to this issue.

P J Sheehan (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise with the Minister for Education and Science the important matter of post-primary school facilities in Skibbereen. The Department of Education and Science and the OPW are dragging their collective feet on this project. That is clearly evident by the replies to two parliamentary questions which I put down on 4 July 2007 and 26 September 2007. The OPW is not treating the acquisition of a school site as a serious matter. There are greenfield sites available that would clearly be suitable for this post-primary community school in Skibbereen.

Is the Minister aware that there are nearly 700 post-primary pupils in Skibbereen town trying to survive in completely overcrowded conditions in three sub-standard schools? There are no playing facilities or recreational facilities of any description. How long more must the people of Skibbereen and its hinterland wait for a decision from the Department and the OPW? Is this proper treatment for a town the size of Skibbereen? I ask the Minister to act before it is too late. The people of Skibbereen cannot imagine why a suitable site cannot be found in the area, when the board of management proposed seven different sites to the OPW for consideration. Surely the time is right for the Minister to act and to influence the OPW to clear some suitable site in the town of Skibbereen.

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising the matter of a new post-primary school in Skibbereen, County Cork.The property management section of the Office of Public Works was requested to source a suitable site to facilitate the proposed new school in Skibbereen. However, the sourcing of a greenfield site has proved very difficult to date. Following an advertisement, a number of sites were identified and examined. Those considered potentially suitable were then discussed with Cork County Council. No site was deemed suitable from the perspective of the Department, the OPW and Cork County Council.

Owing to the difficulty in sourcing a greenfield site, the Department decided to investigate the possibility of utilising the Rossa College site to facilitate the proposed building project. A feasibility study of the site and the building was commissioned in order to determine how best to provide for the long-term accommodation needs of the proposed school. While the outcome of the feasibility study was positive with regard to the provision of a new school, there were some access issues to be resolved and the Department requested the OPW actively to pursue a solution in this regard. However, this option is no longer being pursued owing to opposition from the trustees of the proposed new community school to the Rossa College site.

The Department will continue to work to identify a suitable site for this project and will keep the trustees informed of progress. Once a suitable site has been secured, development of this project will be considered in the context of my Department's school building and modernisation programme. I again thank the Deputy. With the information that he has now obtained, perhaps he might be able to figure out a resolution to local opposition to particular sites.

P J Sheehan (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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I have provided information on three suitable sites in the town.

John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Deputy will have to discuss that afterwards.

Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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It is a national disgrace that a new school, which was promised for Springdale national school in Raheny, does not even appear on the school building list for 2008. Springdale is just one school of many that are in dire need of refurbishment. Teachers and students have to operate in what can only be described as Third World conditions. The walls are damp and mouse traps have to be set every night. The roof on the infants' classroom leaks whenever it rains. There is insufficient space available. The principal has to use her car as an office. The school has no gym hall or staff room. The secretary has to conduct business at the back of a classroom. The plight of Springdale national school was highlighted recently in an article in The Sunday Tribune. It is unacceptable that a school should have to operate in these dire conditions.

The school has been trying since 1997 to acquire a new building. In July 1999, a formal application was made by the school to the Department of Education and Science. In March 2001, the Department confirmed the project would be sanctioned. In February 2003, the school was described as "sub standard" following a school general inspection. In May 2005, the school was advised that the building project was being assessed as a priority project. In March 2006, the school board met with the building unit at stage three of the building process and the school was informed that the money was still available.

In June 2007, the school board was advised that the project must be started no later than February 2008. In June 2007 the planning permission was granted. In November 2007, the school was contacted by the Department and told to await further written approval before proceeding. In December 2007, following numerous calls, the principal was told to wait until after the budget, when the Minister would "make an announcement in her own good time". In February 2008, a list of projects was announced and Springdale national school was not included in this list. The school received planning permission for a new school building in June 2007 and was hoping to put it to tender, but instead its board of management was told by the Department to wait.

I submitted a parliamentary question seeking clarification on when the school would be built. I am still awaiting a response. I hope the Minister can respond tonight.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister for coming into the House to answer these questions personally. This has not always been the case, but I think the Ceann Comhairle is having an influence there.

Deputy Flanagan has outlined the history of all this. It has been a history of nothing but dashed hopes. I represented this area in 2002, before the constituency boundary changed. Now that it has come back into my area again six years later, I am appalled to see that the new school, which was then thought to be imminent, has still not been built. I have a press release from the Department in 2006 stating that the Minister, Deputy Hanafin, had approved the tender for this particular school. That is nearly two years ago, but it has never happened.

People feel really let down. There are 150 pupils in the school. The principal has to set mouse traps and the junior infants' classroom leaks when it rains. There is no hot water in the building. Every weekend something falls off the wall because of the dampness. The school is in a chronic state and the Department's own inspector stated in 2003 that it was totally inadequate, yet no decision has been taken. This school seems to have fallen behind other schools for whatever reason, in spite of the Minister's personal announcement in 2006. I hope she has some good news for us at this point.

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputies for raising the issue of Springdale national school in Raheny. They will be well aware of the scale of investment that is going into school buildings this year. Under the national development plan, almost €4.5 billion will be invested in schools. That shows the commitment of the Government to continue its programme of sustained investment in primary and post-primary schools.

Springdale national school is currently at an advanced stage of architectural planning. The proposed project will consist of the demolition of the existing school and the construction of a new six-classroom school of approximately 1,024 square metres, with a new ball court and children's play area, as well as the provision of temporary accommodation for the duration of the contract. We are working on our large-scale building projects on a phased basis, from initial design stage right through to construction. We obviously must take budget and other demands into account.

The list I announced earlier this year was only the list of schools that were immediately ready to go to construction. Since this school has not gone to tender yet, it did not qualify to be on that list. However, I will be making further announcements during the year on school projects. I assure the Deputies that I am fully committed to the new school building for Springdale national school.