Brian Brennan (Wicklow-Wexford, Fine Gael)
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636. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills whether a rural school (details supplied) would be eligible for a whole school building upgrade rather than relying on constant emergency works applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1730/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The purpose of the Emergency Works Scheme (EWS) is to provide funding specifically for unforeseen emergencies, or to provide funding to facilitate inclusion and access for pupils with special needs. It does so by ensuring the availability of funding for urgent works to those schools that are in need of resources as a result of an emergency situation.

The EWS operates on the basis of a minimal scope works to address the emergency situation. The EWS in intended to remedy an emergency situation and usually provides only an interim measure until a permanent solution can be delivered.

My Department and the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications have also developed a jointly funded school sector decarbonisation pathfinder programme. It is administered by the Planning and Building Unit in my Department and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland in partnership with devolved delivery support from Limerick and Clare Education Training Board, and Longford and Westmeath Education Training Board.

This Pathfinder programme is paving the way for, and informing, a much larger national decarbonisation school sector programme.

The pathfinder programme is a great example of collaboration ensuring the deployment of new design approaches and technologies are introduced to the school sector on an evidence-based approach. This programme continues to assist my Department to explore options and test various solutions for decarbonised energy efficiency solutions in our broad range of school building types.

It is facilitating research on a range of typical retrofit options for schools, which will be tried and tested. It is providing valuable development information for a solution driven delivery strategy which will be founded on a solid evidence base that has proven the robustness and scalability of renewable solutions within the school sector.

Each school selected undergoes a comprehensive assessment to ensure that the measures are suitable for that school and will deliver value to both the school and learnings for the national retrofit programme.

The works typically involves upgrades to the building fabric including wall and roof insulation, doors and windows, air tightness improvements, LED lighting and heating upgrades as well as renewable technologies.

The general principles and approach to school selection includes; schools who comply with their annual reporting obligations to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) with respect to their annual energy usage under the Energy Monitoring and Reporting scheme and secondly schools that demonstrate a strong and holistic commitment to energy management practices through participation in the Energy in Education website portal and advice programme that is operated by the SEAI and my Department.

The programme selection also seeks to enable various cross sections of school types and sizes, energy consumption profiles and different elements of construction type and heritage/ conservation requirements where specific learnings are being targeted.

The pathfinder programme is generally delivered in line with the above considerations however and not on an application basis. Schools, such as the school to which the Deputy refers, who wish to be considered should ensure that they are meeting their Energy Monitoring and Reporting requirements and also participating in the Energy in Education Programme.