Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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783. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide an update on school building projects in Dublin Fingal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13803/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has a strong track record of delivery of school building projects and this was achieved again in 2022 notwithstanding the wider construction sector environment of high inflation, labour shortages and supply chain issues.

Under Project Ireland 2040, we are investing €4.4 billion over the period 2021 to 2025, to add capacity and develop and upgrade school facilities across the country for the almost one million students and over 100,000 staff that learn and work in our schools every day.

The key drivers of capital investment in the schools sector are as follows:

- demographic change, including keeping pace with delivery of SEN and accommodation for Ukrainian pupils particularly at Post Primary

- ensuring alignment with housing provision as best as possible,

- construction costs,

- delivering on the Climate Agenda in the schools sector

Key achievements by my Department in 2022 include:

- There were circa. 180 school building projects delivered during 2022 and a further 300 school building projects remained under construction at the start of 2023 – the majority of which will be completed over the course of this year and early 2024. In this regard, it is worth noting that there were over 50 new school buildings under construction over the course of 2022. This is providing high quality new and modern facilities in schools throughout the country.

- Accelerated delivery of modular accommodation to facilitate additional capacity in special classes and special schools to cater for over 900 children with additional needs.

- Successfully supported and facilitated the enrolment of circa 15,000 children from Ukraine in our primary and post-primary schools. It is worth highlighting that our approach is based on integration and inclusion that supports both the educational and wellbeing of the children that have come to Ireland as a result of the ongoing war in Ukraine.

- Necessary refurbishment and maintenance through small-scale works across nearly 1,000 schools.

- 16 Deep Energy Retrofit Pathfinder projects ongoing in partnership with SEAI which is shaping our direction of travel for delivering on the climate agenda in the schools sector.

- Strategic initiatives put in place to support planning for school provision requirements include the Department’s Geographic Information System, National Inventory of School Capacity, engagement with key stakeholders and also setting up of 16 Regional Education and Language Teams (REALTs) to facilitate enrolment of children from Ukraine in a structured and coordinated manner.

- Strategic initiatives put in place to support delivery include use of project manager supports, procurement frameworks, variety of delivery mechanisms and a strong pipeline of projects.

The current status of all projects are listed on a county by county basis at www.gov.ie. and is updated on a regular basis to reflect their progress through the various stages of capital appraisal, site acquisition, design, tender and construction.