Written answers

Tuesday, 16 January 2018

Department of Education and Skills

School Accommodation Provision

Photo of Bríd SmithBríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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328. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to address the shortage of secondary school places in Dublin 8 in view of the fact that recent communication from his Department suggests that the area will be serviced by a secondary school in Sandymount; if his attention has been drawn to the difficulties that students from Dublin 8 would have accessing Sandymount at peak hours; and if he has further plans to provide pupils and parents from Dublin 8 with the same educational opportunities available to others. [54541/17]

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy may be aware, in order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my Department divides the country into 314 School Planning Areas (SPAs). 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 the Department's own databases. With this information, my Department carries out nationwide demographic exercises at primary and post primary level to determine where additional school accommodation is needed.

Where demographic data indicates that additional provision is required, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the particular circumstances of each case and may, depending on the circumstances, be provided through either one, or a combination of, the following:

- Utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools

- Extending the capacity of a school or schools

- Provision of a new school or schools.

The new post-primary school to open in September 2018 referenced by the Deputy was announced in November 2015 as a regional solution to cater for increased demographic pressure that was anticipated across a number of School Planning Areas on the basis of demographic exercises which were conducted at that time. The School Planning Areas are Dublin 2_Dublin 4 SPA, Dublin 6_Clonskeagh SPA, and Dublin 8 SPA. It is expected that the pressure on schools for school places across these SPAs will be alleviated when the new school referenced by the Deputy has opened.

As with other school planning areas nationwide, the demographic data for the area referred to by the Deputy is being kept under ongoing review by my Department to take account of updated data.

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