Denise Mitchell (Dublin Bay North, Sinn Fein)
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319. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the efforts being made to ensure access to a school place for a child (details supplied) in her local area; what is being done to ensure adequate numbers of local school places are made available in the quickly growing Belmayne and Balgriffin areas of north Dublin; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5513/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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My Department’s main responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in the area.

Parents have the right to choose which school to apply to and where the school has places available for the relevant year, the student should be admitted. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available, a selection process will be necessary. This 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 students not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice.

In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, the Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a geographical information system, using data from a range of sources, including CSO census data, child benefit and school enrolment data, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise and where additional school accommodation is needed at primary and post-primary level.

Major new residential developments have the potential to alter the demand for school places at a local level. In that regard, as part of the demographic demand analysis, the Department monitors planning and construction activity in the residential sector. This involves the analysis of data sources from local authorities and the CSO along with the engagement with local authorities and the construction sector. In this way, up-to-date information on significant new residential developments is obtained and factored into the demographic analysis exercise. This is necessary to ensure that schools infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes, at a local level, where there is a constantly evolving picture with planned new residential development.

In accordance with the provisions of the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018, schools are required to clearly set out their selection criteria in their admission policies. The criteria to be applied by schools and the order of priority are a matter for the schools themselves. It is an important feature of the act that schools can only make a decision on an application for admission that is based on the school’s admission policy.

Under Section 29 of the Education Act 1998, the parent of the student, or in the case of a student who has reached the age of 18 years, the student, may appeal a decision of this school to refuse admission. An appeal may be made under Section 29 (1)(c)(i) of the Education Act 1998 where the refusal to admit was due to the school being oversubscribed. An appeal may be made under Section 29 (1)(c)(ii) of the Education Act 1998 where the refusal to admit was due a reason other than the school being oversubscribed.

TUSLA’s Education Support Service (TESS) is the statutory agency that can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child. TESS are aware that school applications process for 2025/26 is ongoing at this time. During this period TESS advise parents to make applications to local schools and all schools outside of their locality that they may have not already applied to.

TESS can be contacted at 01-7718500. For ease of reference, I have provided a link to the relevant phone numbers for the Education Welfare Officers who are part of TESS assigned to various areas around the country. www.tusla.ie/get-in-touch/local-area-offices .