Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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10. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if access to a co-educational multidenominational second-level school option will be provided in the Ashtown, Cabra, Phibsborough and Dublin 7 areas. [10863/19]

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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This question relates to the need for a co-educational and multidenominational school in Ashtown and Dublin 7 generally. A campaign group, Dublin 7 and Ashtown Secondary Options, has been set up by parents in that area who cannot get access to a non-religious school secondary school or one that is not single gender. This trend is emerging throughout the country, not just in Dublin but it affects many parts of Dublin. It is based on both current and future need because there is a lot of development in the area.

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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The Government recently announced plans for the establishment of 42 new schools over the next four years, 2019 to 2022. This announcement follows nationwide demographic exercises carried out by my Department into the future need for primary and post-primary schools across the country and the four-year horizon will enable increased lead-in times for planning and delivery of the necessary infrastructure.

The Cabra and Phibsborough Dublin 7 school planning area is currently served by eight post-primary schools.

This includes Cabra community college, which is under the patronage of the City of Dublin Education and Training Board. While categorised as interdenominational, Cabra community college is multidenominational in nature and provides for the local community and it could potentially bring additional capacity of this nature at post-primary level to this area.

The new schools announcement did not include a new post-primary school for the Cabra-Phibsboro-Dublin 7 school planning area. However, the requirement for new schools is being kept under ongoing review and in particular would have regard for the increased roll-out of housing provision as outlined in Project Ireland 2040. It will also take into account that, in the last number of years, three new multidenominational primary schools have been established in the area to cater for the increased enrolment numbers at primary level. The projected increased flow of pupils from the primary schools in this area when the current junior cohort from these schools reaches sixth class, as well as the output from more established primary schools in the area, will need to be taken into account in future demographic exercises when deciding on the need for additional post-primary school provision in the area.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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Parents are acting now because two secondary schools in Dublin West have, for some mystifying reason, been appointed to religious patrons. It has happened with Le Chéile Secondary School in Tyrrellstown, the most multi-ethnic part of the country, and with the Edmund Rice Schools Trust, a religious group that has not even paid its full reparations to this State. Even if the Edmund Rice Schools Trust is co-educational, it is still religious-based. The catchment area does not extend to where this particular demand is and parents are asking for it to be done.

Can the Minister comment further on Cabra community college? Many people agree that it is a serious option for the Government to develop. It is a co-educational school and non-religious based but it is very small currently and it only began to do the leaving certificate quite recently. It would need a huge upgrade and investment but parents are asking about it. The principal is very open to it as well so will the Minister investigate the option?

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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At Pelletstown and Ashtown, 3,000 units of housing have been built in the past ten to 15 years, most of them apartments. There is one primary school on the site and there are other adjacent schools so at the moment they can cope but there is no secondary school for the families who make up a large proportion of the 3,000 households to which I referred. There is a massive need for an accessible secondary school for local families.

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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The recent round of the patronage process showed that every school that was chosen by parents was multidenominational, whether they were ETBs or under An Foras Pátrúnachta or Educate Together. I am aware that there is demand and the choice of patron is also an option. On the question of capacity at Cabra community college and its plans for expansion, the geographic information system, GIS, looks at long-term demographics and where the next housing developments are going to be. We are always open to looking at new opportunities in the context of satisfying demand and I would happy to look at that.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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There are massive areas of development and apartments are springing up in Rathborne, Pelletstown and Broombridge. This is not rocket science. When one builds houses, people with children will live in them and will need schools. There is also an existing demand on the part of parents who have children of that age. The only schools that exist are St. Dominic's and a single-sex boys school so there is demand right now. I ask the Minister to examine urgently the option of Cabra community college. It is an existing site, I assume it has land available that could be developed and parents are very open to the idea. We have experience in Dublin West, as they do in other areas, of having to persuade the Department of Education and Skills that demand exists when it is very obvious to everyone else that it does. We then have to play catch-up in providing schools. Let us not do that in this area. We should move on this now.

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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I am happy to do that. My officials are always looking at ongoing needs and ongoing review. On a personal level I would say that sometimes when we have this debate we talk about the things that are not there, or the options that are not there for parents, but other parents look at other options. I am a Loreto boy myself and religion was not rammed down my throat at Loreto secondary school. A lot of value systems were presented to me as a young person in the area of compassion, respect and dignity. It is important when talking about choice that it is not just one-dimensional.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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Is the Minister suggesting that would not have happened in a non-Catholic school? That is what he seems to be implying.

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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I take the Deputy's point. The majority of schools in the conurbation are of one religion and it is important to give parents choice, but it is also important to value the contribution of schools from other patronages.