Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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285. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to large house building developments in Dunshaughlin, County Meath; and his plans to expand school provision in the area at both second level and primary level notwithstanding the provision that currently exists. [35303/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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My Department is included among the prescribed bodies to whom local authorities are statutorily obliged to send draft development and local area plans or proposed variations to development plans for comment and observations. This enables local authorities to reserve future school sites in areas designated for proposed housing development.

My Department contributed to Dunshaughlin Local Area Plan 2009-2015 in 2009, and to the proposed variation of the Local Area Plan in 2011. Meath County Council completed a County Development Plan 2019 – 2025, to which my Department contributed to in February 2017. My Department has also been in consultation with Meath County Council in 2017 regarding a pre-draft Local Area Plan which is due to be circulated in the coming months.

As the Deputy will be aware, my Department monitors demographics on an ongoing basis to identify where additional schools places will be required. To assist in identifying where additional school accommodation is needed, my Department uses a Geographical Information System (GIS) to examine where the pressure for school places across the country will arise. The GIS uses data from a range of sources, including the Central Statistics Office, Ordnance Survey Ireland, the Department of Social Protection and school enrolment returns. With this information, my Department carries out nationwide demographic exercises at primary and post-primary level to determine where additional school accommodation is needed.

This process is detailed and rigorous and will take some time to complete. It is anticipated that decisions based on these exercises will be announced later in 2017.

My Department is keeping all school planning areas under review to take account of updated child benefit data, enrolment data and also the impact of existing and planned capacity increases in the Dunshaughlin school planning area and adjoining school planning areas.