Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

463. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the policy of her Department to new school buildings; and the provision of access for disabled children, particularly where the new building has more than one floor. [3581/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department's Technical Guidance Documents – TGD-020 section 8, sets out the general principles of Universal Design in schools, which all design and construction professionals engaged on school building projects are obliged to follow.

In addition all new school building projects are subject to compliance with the Building Regulations 1997–2014. Part M of the Regulations deals with the subject of accessibility and the related Technical Guidance Document M – 'Access and Use' sets out the guidance requirements which design and construction professionals must apply in the design of all new buildings including schools.

Allied to this, an application for a Disability Access Certificate is normally required for all new school building projects. All Design Teams engaged in the design of new schools, whether they are single or multi-storey buildings, must submit plans, documents and calculations to the relevant Local Authority, which will, in turn, issue a Disability Access Certificate once compliance has been demonstrated.