Noel Coonan (Tipperary North, Fine Gael)
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Question 155: To ask the Minister for Education and Science when a decision will be made for an application for additional funding for a school (detail supplied) in County Tipperary; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9788/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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As part of the expansion of the Small Schools Scheme, a grant was sanctioned to enable the Board of Management of the school in question to extend/refurbish their school. The Scheme allows Boards of Management to address their accommodation and building priorities with a guaranteed amount of funding and gives Boards of Management control of the building project. The intention of the scheme is to provide funding to schools to enable them to undertake wanted building projects. The scheme is not intended to leave schools with significant fund-raising needs but for the school to tailor the scope of capital works commissioned to the available funding. A central tenet of the scheme is that the schools, granted discretion and funding, must equally accept responsibility for prioritisation, adherence to statutory regulations, control of costs and ensuring value for money. The decision on whether to continue participating in the scheme or to drop out, if the scope of build is more than the funding envelope permits, is a matter for each school authority.

The school authorities have received planning permission for their project and are at tender stage at present. 70% of the grant will be paid to the school's bank account when the contractor is on site and has commenced construction. An application for additional funding in respect of the provision of a PE facility has recently been received from the school. This will be considered by the Department's Review Group shortly. The school will be informed of the decision in due course.