Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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696. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if funding will be released to a school (details supplied) for the construction of a physical education hall for which planning permission has already been granted in view of the focus of her Department on shovel-ready capital projects. [32378/20]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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In relation to the school referred to by the Deputy, I can confirm that my Department is in receipt of an application for capital funding under the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme. The School Authority has received the proposed project brief, which includes mainstream teaching accommodation, but does not include a new General Purpose Hall, as this does not fall under the remit of the ASA scheme. The capital project is currently devolved to the school authority for delivery.

As the Deputy is aware, the immediate priority of my Department is providing 20,000 new and replacement school places each year, to ensure that every child has access to a physical school place.

Under the National Development Plan (NDP), increased funding has been provided for the school sector capital investment programme. This funding allows for a continued focus on the provision of new permanent school places to keep pace with demographic demand and also provides for an additional focus on the refurbishment of existing school buildings, to include the building and modernisation of PE facilities in post-primary schools.

Under Project Ireland 2040, we will invest €8.4 billion in primary and post primary school buildings. The government is committed to a PE Hall build and modernisation programme, starting in the second half of the Project Ireland 2040 period.

Therefore, the school's application for funding for a General Purpose Hall cannot be considered at this time.