Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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34. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will report on the provision of school buildings and facilities in the Pelletstown, Navan Road and Ashtown areas of west Dublin. [52016/17]

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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The area north of the Royal Canal has seen a massive expansion in the number of homes. Building has been taking place for the last number of years and a lot more land is zoned for construction. The number of children in the area is phenomenal. At the last census, hundreds of children under six were recorded. Nevertheless, there has been no proper planning, once again, for Pelletstown Educate Together national school which has not even reached the prefab state and must bus children to a neighbouring school down the road. Can the Minister update the House on the latest position?

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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My Department's capital programme continues to address the challenge posed by a rapidly increasing school population. To meet this challenge, my Department's capital investment programme for 2016 to 2021 details the school projects that are being progressed to meet this need. The capital programme also provides for devolved funding for additional classrooms for schools where an immediate enrolment need has been identified or where an additional teacher has been appointed. Since 2015, three new primary schools, namely, Pelletstown Educate Together national school, Scoil Sinéad national school and Broombridge Educate Together national school, have been established in the areas referred to by the Deputy to meet demographic growth. The six-year construction programme also includes building projects at five further schools in the area, namely, Mary Help of Christians national school, St. John Bosco junior and senior boys' national schools, North Dublin Muslim school and Holy Family school for the deaf.

While there was no requirement for a new post-primary school in the area referred to by the Deputy, a new 1,000 pupil post-primary school opened in September 2017 in temporary accommodation in the adjoining school planning area of Carpenterstown-Castleknock. Nationwide demographic exercises for all school planning areas at primary and post-primary level, including the area referred to by the Deputy, are ongoing.

The outcome will determine where additional school accommodation will be needed in the future. It is anticipated that decisions based on this exercise will be announced shortly.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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I am a little worried by that answer because when I asked a question in July a permanent site was meant to be worked on at conveyancing stage, and I expected to hear from the Minister today whether the site has been acquired and all of the documentation signed off. Once again, it seems many houses and apartments have been put in an area, without thinking that a school might be needed. Pelletstown Educate Together national school was established three years ago. I went to see the basement of the building those children were being educated in, and my view is that if it were my child I would have protested about a building with no windows and fresh air. The parents went ahead on the promise that buildings would be ready. Now, the prefabs are not even fully ready. A permanent school building was promised to local people by the Taoiseach when he was a Minister, on 17 November 2015, and the then Minister, Deputy Burton, and that construction would start on permanent buildings for Pelletstown Educate Together national school in Ashtown, which operates from temporary premises. Two years on, there is no sign of a permanent building, or a site never mind a building.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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There are a number of schools involved in the area. The position, as I understand, with Pelletstown Educate Together is that it has three grades to date. The Department has reached agreement with the landowner of a preferred site and the acquisition is progressing through the conveyancing stage. Following completion of the acquisition, the architectural planning process for the provision of a new permanent building for the school will commence. Scoil Sinead has just one infant class at this stage. A potential site to facilitate this building project has been identified and is being progressed. Again, when this process has concluded the architectural planning will commence. The school in Broombridge is in a permanent site. These are the three immediate schools. There are five other schools and I outlined where extensions are being planned.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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Five months ago it was progressing at conveyancing stage. The point is that more than two years ago two Ministers made pre-election promises and told the people of the area these schools were in the bag. Two years on, first class pupils have to be bussed up to Broombridge. Broombridge is not in this area. The other schools the Minister has spoken about are not in Ashtown either and many of them are Catholic schools. I am asking what is the plan to get Pelletstown Education Together national school out of the buildings it is in and not into temporary prefabs but the permanent school promised to it more than two years ago. In fact, people are now concerned about secondary schools, and that there is none in the area. Castleknock is being cited, which is now a Christian Brothers school thanks to the Department of Education and Skills not seeing fit to have a more non-denominational school. There is no school planned for the area. It is a bit disappointing. The principal, the parents and others would be very disappointed that here we are at the end of 2017 and there does not seem to have been any progress on acquiring the site and moving the school into a permanent building.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I hate to witness a situation where a Deputy is not allowing facts to confuse her determination to state nothing is happening on this. I just read out that a site is required for this purpose, the landowner of the preferred site has been identified, agreement has been reached and the acquisition is progressing through the conveyancing stage-----

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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That was also the case five months ago.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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This school will be built. The Deputy tries to spread confusion. This school will be built. The Deputy also raised a question on how the Department selects schools. It selects schools on the basis of parental preference. This system has been run independently of the Department. It is not run by me. It is run by selection based on parents' preferences within the catchment area. That is a fair way of dealing with the issue.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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They are not fair ways, but that is another matter.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy may have one view, but parents have to be consulted. It is parents who, ultimately, are the primary educators and they have a role in deciding what school is selected. In Pelletstown, an Educate Together school was successfully selected. In another area, Scoil Sinead was selected. This is the people's choice in the area where the Deputy lives.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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The Catholic schools do not tell parents-----

Pat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Standing Orders allow me to call on Deputy Burton for a very brief supplementary question.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Will the Minister send to each Deputy representing the area a detailed update? Like the previous speaker, I have submitted many questions to the Minister on this. I have to say, without going into the detail, some of the facts that have just been given are inaccurate and incorrect. The Minister needs to go back to the file and give us a detailed report on where it is at present. By the way, Pelletstown Educate Together is an absolutely first-class and an excellent school, which is well supported by the parents and I want to make this clear.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I am quite happy to provide the Deputies with a position. We recognise it will take longer and, as a result, planning permission was granted on 11 October for a single-storey prefab building comprising four classrooms with other ancillary facilities. The expected completion date for the installation of the prefab is early December 2017. Work is going on to ensure children are accommodated while, at the same time, a longer term project is being advanced.