Written answers

Wednesday, 22 January 2025

Department of Education and Skills

School Admissions

Photo of Cian O'CallaghanCian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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599. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the catchment area of a school can extend past the border of its school planning area; if she will consider amending a school planning area (details supplied) in order to include a number of new estates that form part of the existing communities in that area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1270/25]

Photo of Norma FoleyNorma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Education Act 1998, the question of enrolment policy in individual schools, including the setting of catchment areas, 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. The department does not intervene in the criteria set by a school.

In most areas, school planning areas were based on traditional school catchment areas where all primary schools were assigned to a post-primary feeder area (typically a population centre or town), containing one or more post-primary schools. With the introduction of small areas in census 2011, these feeder areas were amended to align with census small areas. The current school planning areas take account not only of local groupings of schools, but also of natural boundaries, census small areas and other local conditions.

The question of enrolment in individual schools, including the setting of catchment areas, is the responsibility of the Board of Management on behalf of the school patron and my department does not seek to intervene in decisions made by schools in such matters. It is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. In the majority of cases the Boards of Management of schools do not use school planning area boundaries as part of their admissions policies.

In cases were new schools were established to serve a school planning area and the schools uses the school planning area as a criteria on their admissions policy, officials in my department can discuss amendments to this policy with the school, in the context of new residential areas and sustainable transport to schools with the aim for schools to better serve local sustainable communities.

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 . 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.

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