Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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As the Minister will be aware, when the four-year schools capital programme was announced last year, there was to be an eight-classroom primary school established in the Newcastle-Rathcoole-Saggart schools planning area. While this announcement was welcomed, there was some surprise that the school was to be located down in the Citywest-Fortunestown end of the area, rather than, as everybody expected, in the Rathcoole-Newcastle end of it. One of the reasons that is important is there is very significant residential development taking place in Citywest, Rathcoole, Newcastle and Saggart, with more to come. We are already seeing, in Saggart in particular, a significant number of parents who are not guaranteed appropriate school places for their children in Holy Family national school next year. Up to 19 families could be affected. While some of the children could be accommodated in Scoil Chrónáin in Rathcoole, other families do not know at this point if they will have appropriate school places for their children. The question is whether the Minister is aware of this problem, he has spoken to schools in the area and he is willing to work with Opposition Deputies to try to resolve the issue to ensure, in the first instance, that all of the families who are unsure if they will have school places for their children next year will have them secured. We also need to look again at the figures underpinning the proposal for an eight-classroom school in the Citywest-Fortunestown end of the area to see if, in fact, we need two new schools, one in Citywest and one possibly in the Rathcoole end of the area from 2020 to absorb population growth in the two school planning areas.

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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The principal of Holy Family national school has indicated the significant number of children he is unable to accommodate this year. Some 117 applications were made to the school which has only been able to accommodate 93 pupils in classrooms with 31 children Some 24 pupils have been left to their own devices. If people cancel, they may be accommodated, but it is still a significant number. At the same time, the Irish language school, Scoil Chrónáin, has three additional emergency classrooms being provided in the community centre. There is a very significant issue with this year's enrolment in September. The school is at capacity and as new families move into the area, they will not always have children to be placed in junior infants; they may be placed in other classes or looking for a school place, but most of the classrooms are full to capacity.

This time two years ago we had a debate in this House about the provision of second level education in the general Citywest area and the Government had no plans to provide it. It was not until April 2018 that there was an announcement of a new school. The reason I say this is not to have a go at the Government but to highlight the rapidly changing demographics and population growth in the area. Will the Minister agree to reconsider and re-examine this area? The provision he is making for the general area is on Fortunestown Lane which is not appropriate or significant, considering what is required in Rathcoole which, in its own right, requires additional school capacity. The housing developments in the immediate vicinity will fill the new eight-classroom school on Fortunestown Lane. We, therefore, have two issues that we wish to raise with the Minister. Can he give us any advice on what can be done with the children from Rathcoole who would like to have a place there this year? Second, on the longer term development of a new school, can we look at providing a new primary school in the Rathcoole school planning area, not elsewhere in Saggart or Citywest, as is being proposed?

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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Gabhaim buíochas fa choinne na ceiste tábhachtaí seo inniu agus as na sonraí a tugadh fosta. I am appreciative of the information and conscious of the fact that there has been a reaching out to see how we can help and work with each other. I also acknowledge my colleague, Deputy Fitzgerald, for her work in keeping me informed on this matter also. The question gives me an opportunity to set out for the Dáil the position on school places at primary level in the Rathcoole area.

In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas. It uses a geographical information system, GIS, to identify where there will be pressure for school places across the country. The GIS uses data from a range of sources, including the Central Statistics Office, Ordnance Survey Ireland, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection and the Department of Education and Skills' databases. With this information, the Department carries out nationwide demographic exercises at primary and post-primary level to determine where additional school accommodation is needed. Major new residential developments in an area also 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 data for significant new residential developments in each area. This is necessary to ensure schools infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes as there is a constantly evolving picture with planned new residential development, including additional residential developments arising from the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund, LIHAF.

Where demographic data indicate additional provision is required, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the particular circumstances of each case and may, depending on the circumstances, be provided through either one, or a combination of the following: utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools; extending the capacity of a school or schools; and provision of a new school or schools.

As the Deputies will be aware, the Government recently announced plans for the establishment of 42 new schools in the next four years, including a new eight-classroom primary school to be established in 2020 to serve the Newcastle-Rathcoole-Saggart school planning area. The four-year horizon will enable increased lead-in times for planning and delivery of the necessary infrastructure. Following on from the announcement, the locations of all of the schools, including the new primary school announced to serve Newcastle-Rathcoole-Saggart, are being determined as part of the site acquisition process which is under way. The 2020 design and build programme will provide a new eight-classroom school, including a two-class special educational needs base and a 1,000 pupil post-primary school, including a four-class special education needs base, on a shared site at Fortunestown Lane which is in the ownership of the Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board. Owing to commercial sensitivities with site acquisitions in general, I am unable to elaborate further at this time.

The capital programme provides for devolved funding for additional classrooms, if required, for schools where an immediate enrolment need has been identified or where an additional teacher has been appointed. My Department has approved three temporary classrooms for Scoil Chrónáin national school, Rathcoole, to cater for immediate needs. These rooms are initially being provided in Rathcoole Community Centre, pending the provision of the temporary accommodation at the school.

On school admissions, parents can choose to which school to apply and where the school has places available, the pupil should be admitted. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available, a selection process may be necessary. The selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and applied fairly to all applicants. However, it may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice.

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. It is a little disappointing, although in fairness, I would not expect him to have the full details of some of the changes taking place. It is important for him to understand there are very significant demographic and residential changes occurring in this area, both at the Citywest end of the school area and in Rathcoole and Newcastle. The concern Deputy Curran and I have is that the demographic analysis of the ETB and the Department's assessments that informed the capital plan are out of date and do not take into account the new residential developments that are taking place there.

We have two problems. First, there are somewhere between 15 and 19 families who today do not know if they will have appropriate school places for their children next September. We are asking the Minister to work with us to try to resolve that issue alongside the schools in Rathcoole.

Second, we are asking the Minister and the Department to look again at the demographic data to reassess whether we need an additional capital investment in the Rathcoole area. I am sure the three Deputies present and our colleague Deputy Gino Kenny will be very keen to meet the Minister and his departmental officials to talk through the finer details. If the Minister can give us a commitment to do this, we will organise it in the next few weeks.

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. I reiterate that there is still a significant number of families who live in Rathcoole but who have no school places next September for their children. It really is not appropriate that they have to send their children to Newcastle, Saggart or Clondalkin. That is not an appropriate solution. The Minister said there were options, including looking at extending the capacity of schools in the area. We need to investigate these options.

The demographics suggest there has been significant population growth in the west of Dublin. Only two years ago we had a debate in the House in which we pleaded for a new second level school in the Citywest area based on the existing number of primary schools. It was not included in the plans and was first announced in April 2018. That shows the rate of change.

I am appealing to the Minister. The population of Rathcoole will need more than what is provided for in the current plan which is to provide a single stream school in Fortunestown. That school may be extended, but it is too far away from Rathcoole.

As the Minister has indicated clearly, the current school in the area, Holy Family national school, is at capacity. The Minister has extended Scoil Chrónáin. There is immediate demand to plan for a new school in the Rathcoole area. I appeal to the Minister to work with all colleagues to try to address the shortage this year and the longer term goal of providing a new school.

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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This is broken down into two issues. I again thank the Deputies for raising the matter. The demographics are evolving and there are young families in the area. We have to be vigilant about the changed demographics and the increased number of residential developments. That is at what my officials look. They also look at long-term issues, including where planning permission is sought.

We can provide enhanced capacity at existing schools sites. That is looked at, as is the question of where there is a need for a new school. That can also be analysed. In this instance, we have a short-term issue involving 15 to 19 families. At this time of year not all of the data for spaces are available. I will ask the officials in the Department to work with the local authorities in the area to ensure a solution is worked on in that regard in the short term, but we also need to look at the long-term issue. In Dublin, Meath, Kildare and the Acting Chairman's county of Louth there is a constantly evolving picture, with a growing population and more housing developments. This is something of which departmental officials are conscious, which is why they use the geographic information system and as much up-to-date data as possible.

I am happy to work with the Deputies on this issue and appreciate their raising it in the House. The issues of education provision and ensuring we provide as much access for young people as possible are above politics. Certainly, I am happy to work with the Deputies on the matter.