Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit go dtí an Teach inniu. I call on the Minister for Education and Science to examine the Finn Valley college issue. The Stranorlar technical school, which was built in 1939 and opened in 1940, is the oldest County Donegal Vocational Educational Committee school today. On 5 April 2007, Stranorlar technical school officially changed its name and is now known as the Finn Valley college or Coláiste Ghleann na Finne. In 2005, the Department of Education and Science granted approval for the provision of a 3,452 sq. m. new school. Planning permission for a new site was granted in November 2006 on the VEC site at Drumboe, Stranorlar.

The school has 363 students enrolled in the current school year and on 25 February last, approval was granted for a special class encompassing 33 teaching hours on autism-specific disorder, which is due to commence in September 2008. This is another indication of the excellent broad range of educational opportunities provided by the school. It is also important to note that the school has a teacher who is trained in applied behavioural analysis methods.

I refer specifically to the autism class because the current school accommodation and site does not have the space to provide this essential service. The school site is very compact, comprising 0.996 acres. Some of the prefabs on the site have been in place for more than 20 years and are inadequate to meet the accommodation needs of the school. However, the school management and staff, in particular the principal and vice principal, do an excellent job of maintaining the school and the site in pristine condition.

Tenders for the project approved in 2005 were opened by the finance committee of Donegal VEC and relevant members of the design team on 23 August 2007. The design team, by letter dated 19 September 2007, forwarded a preliminary tender report to the Department of Education and Science for its consideration. Subsequently, by letter dated 25 October 2007, the Department requested further or additional information on the design team tender report. The design team has responded to this request, by letter dated 12 November 2007 and the VEC offered the existing school site to the Department, which has an approximate independent value of €1.5 million, as part payment.

I urge the Department to accept favourably the offer from the VEC as the site could be used in future to cater for the additional or expanding needs of the adjacent St. Mary's national school, Scoil Mhuire, which has an extensive prefab complex. I strongly impress upon the Minister the need to issue approval to accept the lowest tender, which was subsequently modified, together with the associated nominated subcontractors and to proceed to contract on this project at the earliest possible date. The selected contractor has given an undertaking by letter to the VEC to hold the tendered price until the end of May 2008. It is essential, therefore, that the Minister gives approval to allow this project to proceed at the earliest possible date.

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity of outlining to the House my Department's position regarding the proposed building project for Finn Valley college, Stranorlar, County Donegal. The existing building dates back to 1939. The proposed new school will be constructed on a VEC-owned site at Drumboe Lower, Stranorlar, comprising 6.79 acres.

The proposed project will consist of the construction of a new school building with a proposed floor area of 3,452 sq. m. to cater for a long-term projected enrolment of 325 pupils. The number of pupils enrolled for the current school year is 265. The new school will comprise four general classrooms, two lecture rooms which are interconnected, specialist rooms, ancillary accommodation and a physical education hall. A tender report for the proposed project is under examination by the Department. The contract for the project has not yet been awarded.

Modernising facilities in our 3,200 primary and 750 post-primary schools is not an easy task given the legacy of decades of underinvestment in this area as well as the need to respond to emerging needs in areas of rapid population growth. The Government has shown a focused determination to improve the condition of our school buildings and to ensure the appropriate facilities are in place to enable the implementation of a broad and balanced curriculum.

During the lifetime of the national development plan almost €4.5 billion will be invested in schools. Approximately €600 million will be spent this year on school buildings. This is an unprecedented level of capital investment which reflects the commitment of the Government to continue its programme of sustained investment in primary and post-primary schools. This investment will facilitate the provision of new schools and extensions in developing areas and the improvement of existing schools through the provision of replacement schools, extensions or large-scale refurbishments over the next few years.

The progression of all large-scale building projects from initial design stage through to construction phase is considered on an ongoing basis in the context of the national development plan and the Department's multi-annual school building and modernisation programme. The project referred to by the Senator likewise will be considered in that context. I assure the Senator that the Minister and the Department are committed to providing suitable, high-quality accommodation for Finn Valley college at the earliest possible date.

Frances Fitzgerald (Fine Gael)
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I call on the Minister for Education and Science to outline a timeframe for the delivery of the proposed second level school for south Lucan, based on lands at Kishogue Cross, which the Department has agreed to in its submission to South Dublin County Council on the variations for the Clonburris local area action plan. I am glad to have the opportunity to raise this issue today and to ask the Minister of State to confirm that the Minister has agreed to this secondary school and to outline the timeframe for its development.

I welcome the change of heart by the Minister and her Department on this matter. I first raised this issue some time ago on the Adjournment and through parliamentary questions. I thank Deputy Brian O'Shea who raised it as a Priority Question with the Minister for Education and Science, which was when we began to see a chink of light on the issue. The attitude of the Department at that time was that the need for such a school had not been fully established. I am glad to see the Minister and her Department now realise this is not the case.

The figures and the statistics that have been put forward by the Lucan south secondary school action group highlight very clearly the need for the school in this rapidly growing area. The statistics that have been gathered by parents must impress the Minister because they are better than those the Department had on its files when this matter was first examined. I commend the action group consisting of local parents for its enthusiasm, determination and absolute commitment to obtaining a school for a rapidly growing area that has been ill-served by infrastructure, despite many houses being built in the region.

I cannot over-emphasise the stress that has been caused to families unable to plan ahead because they do not know which school their children will be enrolled in. I do not believe we would have reached this point if parents had not taken this matter into their own hands and collected the statistics and figures that create a compelling case to be put before the Department.

It appears the Department has agreed to the need for such a school for the area and that it could be located on lands at Kishogue Cross. This was stated in a submission to South Dublin County Council on variations to the Clonburris local area plan. The council will examine this next week. I ask the Minister to take the essential next step in setting down a timeframe for the delivery of such a school because only by doing this can parents plan and can the local community have confidence that this will happen. For far too long the request for a second level school was ignored by the Department and I hope this has been rectified. I look forward to hearing what the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science, Deputy Seán Haughey, has to say on this matter.

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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At the outset, I wish to thank Senator Fitzgerald for raising the matter as it affords me the opportunity to outline to the Seanad the Government's strategy for capital investment in education projects and also to outline the position regarding the delivery of the proposed second level school for south Lucan.

As I have already mentioned, in the lifetime of the national development plan, almost €4.5 billion will be invested in schools. This is an unprecedented level of capital investment that reflects the commitment of the Government to continue its programme of sustained investment in primary and post-primary schools. This investment will facilitate the provision of new schools and extensions in developing areas and the improvement of existing schools through the provision of replacement schools, extensions or large-scale refurbishments over the next number of years.

Turning to the specific matter in hand, based on current demographic trends my Department anticipates that there will be a need for a further post-primary school in Lucan in the medium term and we have asked South Dublin County Council to identify a site for this development as part of the Clonburris local area development plan. A timeframe for the delivery of the school will be known when a suitable site has been identified and acquired by my Department. Once a suitable site is acquired my Department will progress the project to ensure the earliest possible delivery of this school. In the meantime, my Department has increased capacity at the four existing post-primary schools to 3,000 places. The current combined enrolment is 2,500, which means that there is spare capacity for some 500 pupil places.

A building project which is in train for Lucan Community College will further increase capacity by 200 pupil places. In addition to this, a building project for St. Joseph's College has been assessed and the project brief, which will provide an additional 200 places, has been agreed.

The combined total of extra places that will be available when these projects are completed will be 900, which is the equivalent of a post-primary school in its own right. These measures will assist in reducing pressure for pupil places in the short to medium term while the process of advancing the project for a new school continues.

I again thank the Senator for raising this matter and for allowing me to outline the progress being made under the school building and modernisation programme and the position in regard to the delivery of the proposed second level school for south Lucan.