Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 1684: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the situation in regard to the provision of permanent classroom accommodation for a school (details supplied) at a site in County Kildare; when she expects to advance the project on the site; when the school will be open for occupation in the permanent accommodation; when she first entered into discussions to relocate the school from its current prefabricated accommodation to the first floor at another school in County Kildare; if this is on a temporary or permanent basis; the reason information regarding these proposals was not conveyed in the reply to Parliamentary Question Nos. 1367 of 27 September 2006 or 519 of 28 November 2006; the current or intended position in regard to the future development of both schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2322/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The permanent School Building project referred to by the Deputy is at early stage of architectural planning. My Department wrote to the Design Team on the project on the 20th September 2006 requesting a stage 1/2 submission (Outline sketch scheme with costings) and this submission is expected in my Department by the end of February this year.

When this stage 1/2 submission is received in my Department, my Officials will arrange a meeting with the School Authorities and their Design Team in order to evaluate the documentation. It is envisaged that unless there are very exceptional circumstances involved, the meeting will be sufficient to authorise the project to progress to the next stages of architectural planning. Progression of the project to tender and construction will be considered in the context of the School Building and Modernisation Programme 2007-2011

My Department first raised the idea of moving Gaelscoil Nás na Ríogh to share the Scoil Bhríde building on a very temporary basis with the respective Patrons in April 2006. This is the correct protocol. It is then a matter for the Patrons, as the ultimate authority in a school, to address the matter with their Boards of Management. My responses to the previous parliamentary questions referred to by the Deputy gave account of the position on the basis of the questions asked.