Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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There is one primary school in Julianstown, namely, Whitecross national school. The average class size in the school is 25 pupils. The school authority has been given approval to rent two prefabricated classrooms from September 2005 to meet the immediate needs of the school. An application for a permanent extension to the school was recently received in the planning section of my Department and is under consideration. In addition, a new school planning model involving published area development plans is being piloted in five areas in the current school year. Julianstown is included in the pilot scheme as part of an overall plan for the north Dublin-east Meath-south Louth area.

The purpose of this new approach to school planning is to ensure in future the provision of school infrastructure will be decided only after a transparent consultation process. In this regard, parents, trustees, sponsors of prospective new school and all interested parties from a locality will have the opportunity to have their voices heard in the process. Arising from this process, an individual plan will set out the blueprint for the future of educational provision in an area which will be basis against which all decisions relating to capital investment will be made for the next decade. The draft plan for north Dublin-east Meath and south Louth area is nearing completion in the school planning section of my Department and I hope to publish it in the near future.