Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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263. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will further examine the case of a school (details supplied) in County Donegal, which has been taken off the schools' capital buildings programme in view of his previous commitments to do so; the outcome of this re-examination; if he considers that the construction of a new school on the site identified by the Department as a priority in view of the current health and safety concerns brought to his attention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26994/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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A new school is proposed to meet the long term accommodation needs of the school in question. A site has been acquired for this purpose and a building project will be progressed through the various stages of the architectural planning process.

As the Deputy however is aware, my Department's over-riding objective is to ensure that every child has access to a physical school place and that our school system is in a position to cope with increasing pupil numbers. To ensure that this is achieved, the delivery of major school projects to meet significant demographic demands nationally will be the main focus for capital investment in schools in the coming years. The Five Year Construction Plan that I announced in March 2012 is focused on meeting those demographic needs. School building projects such as the school referred to by the Deputy, that are not included in the 5 year construction programme, will be advanced to final planning stages in anticipation of further funds being available to my Department in future years.

Information in respect of the current status of all assessed applications for major capital works is available on my Department's website which is updated regularly throughout the year.

Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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264. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide details of his Department’s assessment of the suitability of the site proposed for a school (details supplied) in County Wicklow, [27002/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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As the Deputy will be aware, my Department has been seeking to acquire land for the delivery of school accommodation for the provision of both a Gaelscoil and Gaelcoláiste in Arklow for some time.

My officials have worked with officials from Wicklow County Council in identifying suitable land in Arklow. Wicklow County Council identified a number of potentially suitable sites which were jointly assessed. A number of options were examined. However, due to unsuitability, lack of access, or the fact that the sites could not be acquired for market rates, various potential sites were ruled out.

I can confirm that a suitable site, which meets my Department's requirements as set out in its Technical Guidance Documents, was identified. These guidelines set out a range of issues to be considered in assessing sites such as ground conditions, site size, access etc.

The site identified is zoned for education provision under Arklow Town and Environs Development Plan 2011 - 2017. Negotiations were conducted with the landowner and agreement has been reached.

The development of the school campus will include the delivery of two school buildings and the development of the required infrastructure. This will allow both schools to leave their current temporary locations and move to a permanent site.