Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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124. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide information on the enrolment and waiting list levels for each primary level school in Swords, County Dublin; the details of the factors his Department used in its demographic analysis to determine demand in the coming years; the action he will take to resolve the capacity issue in Swords for the coming academic year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14283/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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There are a total of 13 primary schools in the Swords school planning area with 11 schools enrolling junior infants – this includes two Junior Primary Schools (catering for Junior Infants to 2^ndclass) and two Senior Primary Schools (catering for 3^rdto 6^thclass). 

The Department was contacted by just one school in the Swords area to advise that they have a waiting list of over 100 children for September 2017.  The indications are that pupils on the waiting list are also on the waiting lists for other schools and may already have been offered a school place.  The Department has been in direct contact with a number of primary schools in the Swords in respect of their junior infant capacity.  In that regard it is understood that up to three schools in the catchment area have capacity and have expressed a willingness to enrol further junior infants in September 2017, if necessary. 

The school enrolment position for September 2017 will be clarified when the schools concerned have completed their enrolment process in the coming weeks.  In that context the Department understands that further offers of places will be made by schools with junior infant places remaining available for September 2017.

While the situation may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice, the Department’s main responsibility is to ensure that the existing schools in the area can, between them, cater for the demand for Junior Infant places in September 2017.  It is important that school size is monitored and that a balance is preserved among all schools in school planning areas to ensure that one school is not expanding at the expense of another school.  The Department is monitoring the enrolment position in the area in question closely.  

In addition to assessing existing capacity in the Swords school planning area for the coming year, my Department is currently in the process of completing a demographic analysis of the Swords area as part of overall demographic analyses nationwide at primary and post primary level to determine where additional school accommodation is needed.  The factors taken into consideration in this process include the analysis of data from a range of sources, including the Central Statistics Office, Ordnance Survey Ireland, the Department of Social Protection and school enrolment returns.