Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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325. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the degree to which he has studied submissions received from the school authorities of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare in regard to the second level school place requirements in view of the overcrowding at Coláiste Life in Lucan and the inaccessibility from a transport point of view to Clondalkin and the obvious lack of second level Gaelscoileanna places; the extent to which he proposes to address the situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9691/14]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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My Department has no record of the submissions to which the Deputy refers.

The Deputy will be aware that 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 cater for increasing pupil numbers. In June 2011, I announced that up to 40 new schools are to be established up to 2017 to cater for increasing demographic demand across a number of locations. This includes some twenty new post-primary schools, including a new post primary school for Maynooth, which will assist in servicing enrolment demand in North Kildare. The announcement included the provision of an Aonad in the Maynooth school. In addition, my Department has confirmed, that if sufficient demand for education through the medium of Irish in the Aonad is demonstrated over a four year cycle, consideration will be given by my Department to the establishment of an independent Gaelcholáiste. My Department has confirmed that the Aonad has capacity to cater for those students referred to by the Deputy. Kildare and Wicklow ETB is currently progressing the building of a new education campus through the planning process and this will provide permanent accommodation for the school.