Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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119. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update on the provision of additional accommodation to schools in Mayo. [17237/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Since 2020, my department has invested over €5.8 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 1,300 school building projects. These projects have delivered almost 100,000 additional and replacement school places, including almost 3,000 in County Mayo. Between projects currently under construction and projects moving to construction in the coming months, investments by the Department of Education are adding over 600,000 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. This includes the delivery of science laboratories, technology rooms, home economics rooms, multimedia suites, mainstream classrooms, special education tuition rooms and special education classrooms. The impact of this will be felt in communities right around the country.

The Programme for Government recognises the importance of strong capital investment in the school building programme and supporting this with enhanced allocations through the NDP process.

With regard to County Mayo, there has been over €129 million invested in schools across the county since 2020, with 58 school building projects completed in that period. Currently there are 80 school building projects in the pipeline for delivery in County Mayo. This includes 11 Additional School Accommodation (ASA) and Modular Accommodation school building projects under construction.

This investment in school buildings is expanding the number of school places, increasing the provision for special education and upgrading and modernising our school infrastructure in County Mayo.

My department will continue to work to advance school building projects in County Mayo as part of its overall capital programme and in line with the Government’s Infrastructure Guidelines.