Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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207. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of primary schools that are not designated feeder schools to a post-primary school; the way in which he plans to ensure that primary schools are each a designated feeder school to at least one post-primary school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46591/19]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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In relation to school admissions, it is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. My Department's main responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in the area.

A Board of Management may find it necessary to prioritise enrolment of children from particular areas or on the basis of some other criterion, including giving priority to applicants who have attended a particular primary school known as a feeder school. The criteria to be applied by schools in such circumstances and the order of priority are a matter for the schools themselves.

New schools established since 2011 to meet demographic demand are required to prioritise enrolments from within the school planning area which the school was established to serve. This does not preclude new schools established since 2011 from enrolling pupils from outside of the designated school planning area where it has capacity to do so, rather it reflects the need to accommodate in the first instance the demographic for which the school was established.

The requirement on new schools established since 2011 to prioritise enrolment from a particular school planning area(s) does not apply to or impact on the majority of existing schools established prior to 2011.