James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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365. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the details of the capital funding allocation for education within the National Development Plan 2021-2030; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57301/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The NDP provides capital funding of over €4.4bn for investment in school infrastructure during the period 2021 to 2025. A 10 year allocation for the period 2021 to 2030 was not provided for individual Departments under the revised NDP. There will be a rolling 5 year funding envelope which will be updated annually for the period 2026 to 2030 within the Government’s overall NDP funding envelope of €136 billion in exchequer capital (€165 billion total capital including non-Exchequer) and will facilitate building a modern and sustainable school infrastructure

This investment will build on the good progress being made on adding capacity to cater for demographic changes and provision for children with special educational needs. This investment will also facilitate an increased focus on the modernisation of existing school stock and help transition the school system for an era of net zero carbon by 2050.

Approximately 1,200 school building projects are currently in progress across the various stages of planning, design, tender and construction – most of which are expected to be either under construction or completed in the period 2021 to 2025.

During the period 2018 to 2020 526 school building projects were completed under the Large Scale Capital Programme (LSCP) and the Additional School Accommodation Scheme (ASA). These projects delivered in excess of 48,000 school places

There are currently in excess of 250 school building projects at construction (on site) with a continuous stream of other projects at or near the tendering stage. These are being progressed as quickly as possible.