Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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146. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the funding provided for capital projects in Longford and Westmeath schools in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45771/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Since 2020, my department has invested over €5 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 950 school building projects and with construction currently underway at approximately 350 other projects, which includes 37 new school buildings. These 350 projects currently at construction involve a total State investment of over €1.5bn.

The department announced earlier this 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.

Since 2019, the capital invested in Co. Longford schools has been over €38m. The table below shows the breakdown by year.

Currently there are 4 school building projects (Large Scale/ASA/Modular) under construction in Co. Longford.

There are also 25 school building projects (Large Scale/ASA/Modular) in Co. Longford moving through the various stages of design, of which 1 are new school project.

Since 2019, the capital invested in Co. Westmeath schools has been over €135m. The table below shows the breakdown by year.

Currently there are 5 school building projects (Large Scale/ASA/Modular) under construction in Co. Westmeath, of which 1 are new school project.

There are also 32 school building projects (Large Scale/ASA/Modular) in Co. Westmeath moving through the various stages of design, of which 1 are new school project.

These projects are being delivered to ambitious timeframes, and the position on individual projects evolves all the time as they advance through various stages. The status of all projects is set out at . This is updated on a regular basis to reflect project progress through the various stages of capital appraisal, site acquisition, design, tender and construction.

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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147. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of primary school teachers employed in Longford and Westmeath in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45772/24]

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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149. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of secondary school teachers employed in Longford and Westmeath in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45774/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 147 and 149 together.

The information for the years requested by the Deputy, from 2019 to 2022, is available on my Department's website at the link below.

Statistical data on the breakdown of the number of teachers employed within each particular County, is not collated and published annually, and is therefore not readily available.

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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148. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of primary school students enrolled in Longford and Westmeath schools in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45773/24]

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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150. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of secondary school students enrolled in Longford and Westmeath schools in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45775/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 148 and 150 together.

Please find attached requested data for years 2019 to 2023, 2023 being the latest year we have final enrolment data.

Please note enrolment data is taken from the Primary and Post Primary Online Databases. All enrolments are as per the census date, the 30th of September, in each academic year.

Longford

Westmeath

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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151. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the funding provided through the ICT grant to Longford and Westmeath schools in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45776/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The Digital Strategy for Schools 2027, which builds on the progress made under the previous Digital Strategy (2015-2020), is underpinned by an investment of some €200m included in the National Development Plan 2021-2030 providing continuity of funding following the €210m that issued to schools to support the previous strategy. To date, €100m of that funding has issued to supports schools to implement the Digital Strategy. Overall from 2019.2020 school year inclusive, schools in Counties Longford and Westmeath have received €8,228,521m in ICT Grant funding.

This funding issues directly to schools as schools are best placed to identify the requirements of their own student cohort and to meet those requirements in the most appropriate way. This can include the purchase of ICT devices such as tablets, hybrid devices, or laptops.

In addition, the Department as part of Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) under Next Generation EU funding facility, issued a once-off grant of €50 million in December 2021 to recognised primary and post-primary schools in the free education scheme in order to support those learners at risk of educational disadvantage through the digital divide.

This funding issued directly to schools as they were best placed to determine the needs of their own students and have autonomy to do so, within the criteria applying to this funding. This can include establishing schemes to loan devices to students, and this also applies to Digital Strategy Grant funding.

The specific timing for issue of the ICT grant is subject to the availability of Exchequer funding and the wider capital needs of the Department including the building programme to ensure the supply of school accommodation.

The information sought by the Deputy in relation to the breakdown of ICT grant funding to schools in Counties Longford and Westmeath from 2019.2020 school year to current, is as follows:

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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152. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the funding provided for NEPS services in Longford and Westmeath in each of the years 2019 to date, in tabular form. [45791/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department’s National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides educational psychological support to all primary and post-primary, and special schools. This involves direct support in the event of a critical incident, access to national and regional support and development work to build school capacity to support students, access to a NEPS psychologist for responses to queries arising, and access to individual pupil casework where there is need via a NEPS psychologist or through the Scheme for the Commissioning of Psychological Assessments.

The budget allocation for NEPS in 2024 is €32.3m and this allocation covers both pay and non-pay costs. A further €5m has also been allocated for the Counselling in Primary Schools Pilot. This brings the overall budget for NEPS in 2024 to a level of €37.3m. This has risen from a figure of €20.8m in 2019.

NEPS psychologists work within a regional structure serving the needs of schools in their immediate vicinity. NEPS is made up of six regions – Longford and Westmeath are in NEPS Region 1 along with Offaly, Laois, South Dublin, and Kildare. NEPS is continuing to recruit educational psychologists.

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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153. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of applications received from schools in Longford and Westmeath under the major capital works scheme; and the number granted to date in 2024. [45794/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I can confirm to the Deputy, that my Department received 6 applications from Longford and 3 applications from Westmeath for major capital funding, through the Additional School Accommodation(ASA) scheme.

I can also confirm that in 2024 my Department approved funding for 8 projects in Longford and 10 projects in Co Westmeath.

The purpose of the Additional Schools Accommodation (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.

Since 2020 my Department has invested over €5 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 950 school building projects and with construction currently underway at approximately 350 other projects, which includes 37 new school buildings. These 350 projects currently at construction involve a total State investment of over €1.5bn.

The Department announced earlier this 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.

The Department's website provides a list, by county, of all projects being progressed under the large scale and additional accommodation scheme. This is available here: .

The information requested by the Deputy is in the attachment provided.

">Applications from Longford and Westmeath