Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for the opportunity to discuss this matter and, more importantly, I congratulate her on her election to Seanad Éireann. I thank her for the work she did as vice chair of the disability matters committee in the Thirty-third Dáil. The dedication and commitment to her job was second to none. We had a hugely important role and the committee worked well across the political divide.

On allowing the project in Milltown National School in Belturbet, County Cavan, to proceed to stage 2, I thank the Deputy for raising the matter because it gives me an opportunity to update Seanad Éireann on the current position regarding the additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme for the school. My Department has approved a brief for the project, which includes the provision of two mainstream classrooms, two SET rooms and one SEN base. As the Senator will be aware, the project referred to was approved to enter the Department's pipeline for school building projects and responsibility for delivery has been devolved to the school authority locally. A design team has been appointed to design the accommodation being provided and to bring the project through the tender and construction phases.

Projects progress from stage to stage in accordance with the project brief and the Department’s design guidelines. Under the ASA scheme the Department has detailed procedures in place for the appraisal, design, tender and construction of all school building projects. Design team procedures define the points in the project lifecycle at which approval must be sought from the Department, which aligns with the infrastructure guidelines to ensure there is proper accountability. These processes include stage approval reviews which challenges all elements of design and specification. They are an essential element of good cost control and supports market interest in our school buildings

As the Senator said, Milltown National School is currently at stage 1 and the school submitted a stage 1 report to the Department in August 2024. This report is currently under review from a technical and cost perspective, as outlined in the public infrastructure guidelines.

As the Senator may know, a significant amount of money has been invested by the Department over the past while in school building projects and this will continue. I will take the important issues the Senator raised regarding Milltown National School back to the Department. I will ensure there is a response in a timely fashion to the documentation that was submitted in August 2024, and I will report back to the Senator in a timely fashion. It is important that we keep these projects moving because, as the Senator has outlined, there has been significant growth in the school population, from 56 pupils to 174. It is important that the project is progressed. We will report back to the Senator as a matter of urgency.