Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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365. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the value placed on the crèche facilities which operate in school buildings. [35508/19]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department does not have any remit for the provision of crèche facilities in schools.

In some cases, school authorities have facilitated a pre-school service on school property which involves the use of spare capacity within an existing building. The priority for schools is mainstream educational provision for pupils and should schools require the space for school purposes, the space must be returned to full-time school use. This is very important in every instance but is of particular relevance where there is a growing school population and a school has not yet reached capacity and space is available which may be required in the future.

A set of guidelines in relation to the use of school buildings outside of school hours was published by my Department in October 2017.  These guidelines can be viewed on the Department's website at this link: . The purpose of these guidelines is to provide guidance for schools in relation to the use of school buildings outside of school hours. The document also provides guidance to schools who wish to facilitate pre-school arrangements.