Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

I thank Senator Kitt for raising this matter as it affords me the opportunity to outline to the House the strategy of the Department of Education and Science for capital investment in education projects. I also wish to outline the position regarding an application for an extension and PE hall received from St. Raphael's College, Loughrea, County Galway.

The management authority of that school applied for an extension in February 2000 and for the refurbishment of the existing PE hall in February 2003. The school is accommodated in two blocks, comprising the junior block which accommodates class groups up to junior certificate level and the main building accommodating all other levels. The application for an extension is under consideration in the school planning section of the Department. All relevant factors, including enrolment and demographic trends in the area, must be taken into account. Following an assessment of these factors, it is considered that the long-term projected enrolment for this school is 325 pupils. This is the figure on which the Department will base the school's future requirements.

The next step is to determine how to meet the school's accommodation needs. Departmental officials are in discussions with the trustees on how best to meet these needs. Once this is decided, the project will be prioritised in accordance with the recently revised prioritisation criteria for large-scale projects. The next step in progressing a large-scale project is the drawing up of schedules of accommodation, which must be agreed by the school authorities before architectural planning of the project can commence.

Further progress on St. Raphael's College and all such projects will be considered in the context of the schools building programme from 2005 onwards. The management authority of the school has recently made applications for various works under the summer works scheme and for temporary accommodation under the 2005 schools building programme. These applications will be assessed in the context of the school's overall accommodation requirements. It is planned to publish the list of successful applicants early in the new year.