Written answers
Wednesday, 13 December 2023
Department of Education and Skills
School Enrolments
Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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90. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide a schedule of the number of pupils in each of the 314 school planning areas that did not secure a place in their first preference second level school in 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 school year, in tabular form. [55478/23]
Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department does not have information regarding the number of pupils that did not secure a place in their first preference post-primary school.
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. Under the Education Act 1998, the question of enrolment policy in individual schools, is the responsibility of the Board of Management on behalf of the school patron. The selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. However, this may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice. The Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 requires schools to clearly set out their selection criteria in their admission policies. Schools have discretion in relation to their admission criteria and how they are applied. Living in a particular catchment area is one criteria that a school may apply. The criteria to be applied by schools and the order of priority are a matter for the schools themselves. My Department does not intervene in the criteria set by a school.
Section 29 of the Education Act, 1998 provides for an appeal by a parent or guardian to the Secretary General of my Department, or in the case of an Educational Training Board (ETB) school to the ETB in the first instance, where a Board of Management of a school, or a person acting on behalf of the Board, refuses to enrol a student in a school.
Further information on the Section 29 appeals process is available on my Department's website, www.education.ie. The Education Welfare Service (EWS) of the Child and Family Agency (Tusla) is the statutory agency which can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child. The EWS can be contacted at 01-7718500.
Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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91. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she and her officials have utilised the most recent census of population data in the context of the provision of school capacity; her plans to analyse the most recent census of population data in order to and compare it to information collated in respect of the 314 school planning areas. [55480/23]
Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that requirements for school places is kept under on-going review in the context of available information on population, enrolments and residential development activity.
In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a Geographical Information System, using data from a range of sources, including CSO Census data, Child Benefit and school enrolment data, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise and where additional school accommodation is needed at primary and post-primary level.
Major new residential developments have the potential to alter the demand for school places at a local level. In that regard, as part of the demographic demand analysis, my Department monitors planning and construction activity in the residential sector. This involves the analysis of data sources from Local Authorities and the CSO along with the engagement with local authorities and the construction sector. In this way, up-to-date information on significant new residential developments is obtained and factored into the demographic analysis exercise. This is necessary to ensure that schools infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes, at a local level, where there is a constantly evolving picture with planned new residential development.
The total for the population enumerated in Census 2022 was 5,149,139 persons which is an increase of 8% since April 2016. Any change arising from an increase in the number of pupils directly linked to the Census is likely to be marginal in the short term relative to the overall challenge of meeting our targets. This is because my Department already have the precise enrolment numbers for all of the children covered by the census. In addition to this the projected intake to infant classes for next few years is tracked through the monitoring of child benefit data.
The 2022 demographic exercise indicates that 85% of the 314 school planning areas at primary level show static or decreasing enrolments for the period to 2026 compared with 2021. At post-primary level some 74% of school planning areas are anticipated to have increased enrolments for the period to 2029, with most expected to reach a peak within the next two or three years.
Where demographic data indicates that additional provision is required, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the particular circumstances of each case and may, be provided through: • Utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools,• Extending the capacity of a school or schools,• Provision of a new school or schools.
The Department will continue to liaise with Local Authorities in respect of their County Development Plan and any associated Local Area Plans with a view to identifying any potential long-term school accommodation requirements across school planning areas.
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