Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for his question on providing adequate school places in the county and city of Galway next September. As Minister of State for special education, obtaining appropriate placement for children with special needs is slightly separate to the question but I am aware of the need for that and how forward planning is critical. That is also critical when we talk about mainstream schools.

The Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a geographical information system to anticipate school demand. It gets information from a range of sources, including child benefit data, school enrolment data and information on residential development activity, for this purpose. Having considered the projected requirements in a school planning area, the Department looks at existing capacity within that area. I note what the Senator says around some schools and there being, in his view, a lack of capacity. The Department is mindful of that.

Around Galway county and city and its environs, there are some elements of Project Ireland 2040 population and housing targets that help to inform the Department's projections of school place requirements. There are major new residential developments in many school planning areas and they have the potential to alter the demand in that area. As part of the demographic exercises, the Department engages with local authorities to obtain up-to-date information on significant new residential developments in each area. This is critical to ensuring school infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes. There is a constantly evolving picture with planned new residential development.

We are also looking at the continued growth in enrolments in Galway City. The Senator mentioned Galway Educate Together Secondary School, which was established in 2019 to serve the Galway city and Oranmore school planning areas. My Department is also progressing a number of other building projects in Galway city under the national development plan. Aside from the planned project for Galway Educate Together, the most significant projects in terms of planned additional capacity is a new 1,000-pupil school building for St. Joseph’s Patrician College, mentioned by the Senator, which will also provide two classrooms for pupils with special educational needs. That project is currently at stage 2b. Coláiste Muire Máthair also has a project at stage 1 for a proposed 1,000-pupil school, plus four classrooms for pupils with special education needs, which I welcome.

Despite all of that, the Department is aware of pressures at post-primary level in the Galway city school planning area. A critical next step is to acquire clarity on the number of additional first year places required for 2024 in order for an appropriate solution to be put in place. In that context, schools in a number of areas of enrolment pressure, including Galway city, have been requested to share data on applications for admissions. The Department is liaising closely with schools to ensure that data is provided as soon as possible. Once it is received, the requirement for places can be established. The understanding of the school place needs will give clarity as to the specific actions required in Galway and its environs.