Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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323. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to increase primary and post-primary school places in the Cherry Orchard-Park West area of Dublin or in the wider catchment area during the lifetime of the current Dublin City Development Plan 2016 to 2022 (details supplied). [37094/17]

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 the Draft Dublin City Development Plan 2016-2022 in 2015.

In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas. My Department uses a Geographical Information System (GIS) to identify 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 my Department's own databases. With this information, my Department is currently carrying out nationwide demographic exercises at primary and post-primary level to determine where additional school accommodation is needed.

Following the completion of the 2017 demographic exercises, additional schools may open. It is anticipated that decisions based on these exercises will be announced later in 2017.