Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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864.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her views on the need to provide additional funding for sports halls in schools. [33637/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, investment and expenditure on PE Halls is an element of the overall expenditure and investment in the School Building Programme. The provision of General Purpose (GP) rooms and PE Halls, at primary and post primary level respectively, as well as outdoor hard play areas, form part of the accommodation brief for all new school buildings or where a major building or refurbishment project is being delivered for an existing school. My Department provides different size PE Halls and GP rooms depending on the size of the post-primary or primary school.

At primary level, a 195m²GP room is provided as standard as part of new 8 to 16 classroom school buildings, with larger primary schools, with 24 or more mainstream classes, being provided with twice this size. At post primary level, smaller new post primary school buildings are provided with a 406m²PE Hall, with schools designed for 450 or more students provided with a larger, 594m²Hall.

The GP rooms and PE Halls form part of a suite of ancillary facilities provided as part of new school buildings. At primary level, new school buildings additionally include a Library, Multi-purpose room, Special Education Tuition rooms, and offices. The accommodation provided for new primary schools to support children with special educational needs also includes a Central Activities Space, Multi-Activity Room, Daily Living Skills facility and Quiet Spaces.

At post primary level, new school buildings include a GP room as well as a PE Hall, Social Areas, Pastoral Offices, Special Education Tuition rooms and a Fitness Suite. As at primary level, accommodation provided in new post primary school buildings for students with special educational needs also includes significant ancillary facilities.

In addition, my Department’s Design Guidelines for all new schools provides for outdoor multi use games areas (or hard play areas) and the level of play space provided varies with the size of school. For example, a new 24 classroom primary school with Special Education Needs classes is provided with 3 ball courts, 2 junior play areas, as well as a Secure hard and soft play area and a Sensory Garden.

In respect of new post-primary schools, a new 1,000 pupil post-primary school will be provided with 6 ball courts and a secure hard and soft special education play area.

The accommodation and facilities provided as part of new school building projects have been designed to meet the curricular and operational needs of schools, including the delivery of the Physical Education curriculum. At primary level, the General Purpose room can be utilised to support the provision of PE, but it is important to note that the PE curriculum permits schools flexibility in its implementation, and supports a broad and balanced approach, taking account of the varying indoor and outdoor facilities available.

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.

A future strengthened focus on refurbishment of existing school stock will have different strands and will include a PE build and modernisation programme which will enable students in post-primary schools to have access to appropriate facilities to support PE provision, particularly also in the context of the roll-out of PE as a leaving-certificate subject. Enhanced and modernised PE facilities will also provide important amenities for local communities.

However, the main focus of the Department’s capital funding over the last decade and for the coming period is on provision of critical additional capacity to cater for increasing demographics and children with special education needs.

The Department is required to manage the overall school building programme so that we target and prioritise areas that are under greatest pressure for additional school places. This reflects the Department’s fundamental objective of ensuring the availability of a school place for every child.

The overall position with regard to potential modernisation and replacement of existing school infrastructure will be kept under review as capital funding allocations for future years are clarified.