Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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85. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the length of time his Department has been in discussions with a school (details supplied) regarding taking over a campus; and if these discussions and negotiations included representatives from both the primary and secondary schools. [32460/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy may be aware the decision to close the schools in question and the timeline for the closures was a decision for the schools' Trustees and not my Department.

The Trustees had approached my Department at an early stage outlining the situation and requesting if the Department was open to acquiring the property as they were seeking to ensure it would continue to be used for educational purposes.

These discussions were taken up again in early 2014 and culminated in the acquisition of the property by my Department in June 2016.

The Trustees have at all times indicated their commitment to the school community and it was on that basis that a phased closure of both the Junior and Secondary schools is being arranged, to ensure an orderly wind-down of the schools.