Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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174. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when a school (details supplied) will be permitted to proceed to tender for an additional accommodation and extension; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40821/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy is aware, the project for this school has been devolved for delivery to the school authority. The project brief includes an extension to the existing school buildings, decanting if required, necessary to satisfactorily develop the post primary school on its existing site, to cater for an enrolment of 700 pupils.

The Stage 2b architectural report has now been approved by my Department, and I am very pleased to advise that the project has been approved to progress to tender stage this week.

As soon as tender stage is complete, my Department can expect to receive the Tender Report which will then be reviewed and once approved, the project will progress onwards to construction in due course.

My Department will continue to engage directly with the school authority, to provide any assistance needed to progress this project.

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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175. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the current status of a school’s (details supplied) application within the additional accommodation scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40822/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I can confirm to the Deputy, that the school in question has submitted an application for capital funding, under my department's Additional Schools' Accommodation (ASA) Scheme for extra accommodation at their school.

The purpose of the ASA scheme is to ensure that essential mainstream and special education classroom accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each year and where the need cannot be met by the school’s existing accommodation or at other schools in the area.

At primary level, this situation generally arises to cater for a school’s accommodation requirements where an additional teaching post has been sanctioned by Teacher Allocation Section, or the requirement for a new class for pupils with special education needs has been identified by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), and all available alternative accommodation within the school is already being used for classroom purposes. The capacity at other schools in the area is also considered as part of the assessment of any accommodation needs.

In general, demographics are falling at primary level and this trend is due to continue. Therefore the Department considers it prudent to maximise the use of existing spare accommodation capacity at primary level in the first instance, before considering any applications for further accommodation needs. This is in line with public spending requirements.

The Department’s Planning and Building Unit is therefore carefully analysing the medium to longer-term requirements for additional accommodation taking account of enrolment projections and the need to make optimum use of existing capacity in schools in the area.

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.

A decision on the application has very recently been communicated to the school in question.