Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

101. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide the relevant departmental geographic information systems, GIS, data, that is, enrolments and other relevant data which is mapped for the Finglas, Ballymun, Dublin 11, school planning area. [42348/19]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data in a way that takes account of the significant local and regional variations in demographic trends and enrolment projections, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas, of which some 40 are in Dublin. 

Using school planning area boundaries within my Department’s Geographic Information System (GIS) allows data within those boundaries, including data for enrolments in schools, child benefit and other relevant data to be added to the mapping information, grouped and analysed.  The GIS records the number of primary and post-primary schools within each planning area, the combined enrolments for all of the schools within each area, including total enrolment and enrolment in each class group, together with the relevant child benefit data for the area.

In most areas, school planning areas were based on traditional school catchment areas where all primary schools were assigned to a post-primary feeder area (typically a population centre or town), containing one or more post-primary schools.  With the introduction of Small Areas in Census 2011, these feeder areas were amended to align with Census Small Areas. The current school planning areas take account not only of local groupings of schools, but also of natural boundaries, Census Small Areas and other local conditions.

These school planning areas are used in the demographic exercise as a basis for the assessment of areas of growth and to inform recommendations on the establishment of any new schools required in that school planning area.

There are currently nine primary schools and one post-primary school in the FinglasEast_ BallymunD11 school planning area as set out in the table.

Details of the enrolments for each of these schools are available on my Department's website www.education.ie.

A copy of the FinglasEast_BallymunD11 school planning area map is at the link.