Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. I am taking it on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Education, who is currently at a Cabinet meeting and unavailable. The Senator has raised this previously and our colleague Senator O'Loughlin has also raised a number of issues in this regard.

For school planning purposes, the Department of Education divides the country into 314 school planning areas and utilises a geographical information system to anticipate school place demand. Information from a range of sources, including child benefit data, school enrolment data and information on residential development activity is used for this purpose. Additionally, Project Ireland 2040 population and housing targets inform the Department's projections of school place requirements.Projections of post-primary school place requirements are informed by multiple factors, including primary school enrolments in the area and primary to post-primary transfer patterns.

The Department's projections of post-primary school place requirements in Newbridge are showing an increase in the short term with a subsequent gradual decline and the Kildare school planning is showing an increase in the short to medium term. While the Department is aware of increasing pressures and demand for additional school places in Newbridge and Kildare, it is important to note that where enrolment pressures arise, it may not be as a result of lack of accommodation but may be driven by other factors, including duplication of applications where pupils have applied for a place to a number of schools in the area or school of choice where pupils cannot get a place in their preferred school while there are places in other schools in the town or area. Some towns or areas have single-sex schools and while places are available in the school they are not available to all pupils. Another factor is external draw, that is, pupils coming from outside the local area. The Department is working to establish the true extent of any capacity issues across school planning areas through ongoing discussions with the relevant school patrons and authorities. This close engagement will allow the Department to identify at an early stage particular capacity requirements for the forthcoming years which may necessitate further action to that already in train including, where required, the provision of modular accommodation solutions.

As the Senator has acknowledged, the Department is progressing a number of building projects in Newbridge and Kildare under the national development plan, NDP. The most significant project in terms of planned additional capacity is a new 1,000 pupil school building for Curragh Community College which will also provide four classrooms for pupils with special educational needs. Agreement in principle has been reached on the permanent site for this school which will be located on the former Magee Barracks site in Kildare town. In relation to immediate needs and additional capacity, the Department is in discussions with the Department of Defence and Kildare Wicklow Education and Training Board, KWETB, with regard to the refurbishment of an existing building known as block A which is adjacent to the existing school. It is intended this building, once refurbished, will provide for the extra accommodation required to meet the school's needs for September 2023. This provision of a new replacement school and relocation to the Kildare school planning area will provide significant additional capacity in the area.

There are also additional projects approved or under assessment at the following schools in Newbridge. A major project for Patrician Secondary School Newbridge to expand the school to 1,000 pupils is currently at stage 2b of architectural planning, detailed design, the St. Conleth's Community College additional school accommodation application is currently being assessed in the Department, and the Holy Family Secondary School Newbridge additional school accommodation application is being finalised in the Department. In addition, there is also a major project approved for Cross and Passion College Kilcullen, which is to expand the school to cater for 1,000 pupils, and this project is currently at stage 2b, detailed design. Accordingly, I wish to advise the Senator that the Department of Education is aware of increasing pressures and demand for additional post-primary school places in a number of school planning areas across Kildare. I assure the Senator that the Department of Education will continue to engage with the relevant patrons in respect of the post-primary school enrolment position in the area, as well as with local representatives, and that the Department is focused on ensuring that the start of the 2023-24 school year operates as smoothly as possible for all schools and their students.