Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 463: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if assistance is provided by his Department for the provision of rooms whereby parents can meet either during or after school hours to deal with assistance for children and so on in primary schools here; the details of such assistance; if assistance exists for the provision of outside seating in school yards at primary schools; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33430/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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Many primary schools have a multi-purpose room which can be used for the purposes referred to by the Deputy. With regard to outdoor seating, my Department's General Design Guidelines for Schools recommend that, in designing a new school, a variety of informal and social areas should be created to suit the learning development and cultural needs of pupils/students during breaks and before and after school. In existing schools, it is open to the school authorities to prioritise expenditure from the school's minor capital works grant and use it to purchase furniture, if required.

Grant-aid for Parents Rooms and Outdoor Play Facilities has also been made available to schools under the Educational Disadvantage category of the Dormant Accounts Fund and the RAPID Leverage Fund. Eligibility for the scheme was restricted to primary and post primary schools participating in my Department's DEIS programme, schools in, or serving, RAPID areas and special schools.

The scheme consists of four measures and a number of sub-measures. The four measures are: Outdoor Play Facilities; Libraries; Parent Rooms; and Dining Areas. Schools were allowed to submit prioritised proposals under each of the measures. To date, a total of €24.5 million has been made available to fund the scheme.

In July 2007, proposals for 447 outdoor play facilities were assessed and approved, totalling €6.25 million in grant-aid. The majority of these projects are now complete and grant-aid has been paid to the schools.

In June 2008, 118 parent room projects and 15 combined library and parent room projects were approved for a total of €6.82 million in grant-aid. These projects are due to be complete by 19 December 2008.