Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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622.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the capital funds are available to her Department or the Louth and Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB) to undertake the work to develop the new LMETB Head Office in Drogheda, as per the Government decision of 2013; the stage this process is at; when the building work will commence on the site; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31297/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The project referred to by the Deputy has been devolved for delivery to Louth and Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB).

The project is at Stage 2b of the architectural planning process. The Stage 2b report has been received and reviewed in my Department. My Department has now issued some comments to the design team which must be addressed before this stage can be finalised. Following a further review and once approval of this report is sanctioned, the project will progress to tender stage and construction in due course.

It is not possible to provide a timeline for completion of the project at this juncture.

Since 2020, my department has invested in the region of €4.9 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 900 school building projects and with construction currently underway at approximately 300 other projects, which includes 30 new school buildings. These 300 projects currently at construction involve a total State investment of over €1.2bn.

I also announced earlier in the year that close to 90 projects, including 28 new school buildings, would be authorised to proceed from tender stage to construction over the course of 2024 and early 2025. In total, around €800 million will be invested in these projects under the department’s Large Scale Capital Programme and Additional Accommodation Scheme for essential classroom accommodation.

Between projects currently under construction and projects moving to construction in this latest phase, investments by the Department of Education are adding over 550,000 square metres of new and modernised capacity to our school estate.

This is a record level of investment in school buildings. It will expand the number of school places, significantly increase provision for special education and upgrade and modernise our school infrastructure. The impact of this will be felt in communities right around the country.

The key drivers of capital investment in the schools sector include:

• demographic growth, particularly at post primary level
• increased demand for special educational needs provision
• alignment of school place provision with new housing development
• climate action objectives including deep energy retrofit.