Noel McCarthy (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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156. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to outline the options available to a school (details supplied) for the provision of a new PE hall and ASD unit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8565/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the school in question was recently approved additional accommodation under the Department’s Additional School Accommodation (or ASA) scheme. In October last year funding was approved for reconfiguration works to the school to provide for a special class as well as a traditional build of one mainstream classroom and one special education tuition room. This project is currently with our delivery team and will be devolved to the school authority.

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 by available accommodation at other schools in the area. A request for a PE Hall does not come within the remit of the ASA scheme.

A future strengthened focus on refurbishment of existing school stock will have different strands and will include a PE build and modernisation programme which will enable students in post-primary schools to have access to appropriate facilities to support PE provision, particularly also in the context of the roll-out of PE as a leaving-certificate subject. Enhanced and modernised PE facilities will also provide important amenities for local communities.

Since 2020, my department has invested over €5.7 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 1,150 school building projects and with construction currently underway at approximately 300 other projects, which includes new school buildings some of which are being delivered in phases. These 300 projects currently at construction involve a total State investment of over €1.3bn.

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.

Schools’ support for the establishment of special classes is very welcome and the Department commends any school who wishes to open a special class. However, an analysis of both the need for special class places and existing capacity in schools in the general area will first need to be completed before a decision can be made on a school’s application for additional accommodation. In this regard, the Department is working very closely with the NCSE to ensure that the most appropriate solution is identified with a view to providing the most immediate and cost effective accommodation solutions for the establishment of new special classes.

Under the Programme for Government there is a commitment to deliver a PE build and modernisation programme, including General Purpose (GP) rooms so that more schools have indoor facilities for PE and local communities have access and extra amenities available to them. However, the main focus of the department’s capital funding over the last decade and for the coming period is on provision of critical additional capacity to cater for increasing demographics and children with special education needs. The Department is required to manage the overall school building programme so that we target and prioritise areas that are under greatest pressure for additional school places This reflects the Department’s fundamental objective of ensuring the availability of a school place for every child.