Seán Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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Question 85: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of new primary schools in Louth Meath that will be needed to cater for estimated population growth over the next 10 years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40148/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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In relation to forward planning in areas of rapid growth, the process of assessing the need for new or additional educational facilities at primary or post-primary level in any given area entails consideration of all relevant factors, including enrolment and demographic trends, housing developments and the capacity of existing schools to meet the demand for places. Liaison with existing schools is also an important part of the process, as the school authorities would usually alert the Department where, in their view, the need for additional accommodation is anticipated. In this way, every effort is made to ensure that there is adequate existing provision, or that timely arrangements are made to extend capacity or provide new infrastructure where necessary.

Over and above the statutory consultation provisions in relation to local authority draft area development plans, the Department has in recent years worked to strengthen contacts with local authorities to enable informed decisions to be made in planning future educational provision.

On top of this, the published prioritisation criteria for large scale building projects, which were revised following consultation with the Education Partners, targets school projects in rapidly developing areas by assigning them a band 1 rating which is the highest priority possible. Innovations in the delivery of school buildings such as Generic Repeat Designs and use of the Design and Build model ensure that new school buildings are delivered in the fastest timeframe possible. This is clear evidence of the Department's commitment to ensuring that the needs of rapidly developing areas are met as quickly as possible.

School Planning Section is also working proactively with some local authorities on the possibility of the development of school provision in tandem with the development of community facilities.

In addition the Department has introduced a new school planning model involving published area development plans. One of the areas assessed is East Meath/North Dublin/South Louth area and the Department's Plan for this area is currently being revised in the School Planning Section of the Department to take into account the preliminary Census figures published recently and is expected to be published shortly. The purpose of this new approach to school planning is to ensure that, 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 schools 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 the touchstone against which all decisions in relation to capital investment will be made for the next decade.

In all developing areas in Louth and Meath, the Department continually monitors the demand for primary and post-primary education and takes a decision to purchase reserved sites and construct new schools as the need is determined.