Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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418. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been brought to the lack of availability of co-educational primary schools in Cork (details supplied); the actions her Department is taking to increase the availability of co-education learning opportunities for children and parents; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37538/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I can assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post primary level, including children and young people with special educational needs is an absolute priority of mine.

In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my 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.

Togher is located in Glasheen_CorkCity school planning area. Approximately half of the schools in the area are co-educational. Eight of the 18 primary schools and four of the eight post primary schools in the school planning area are co-educational. While all new schools established by my department are co-educational, the decision-making authority for any change of status in existing schools is the patron/trustees of the schools concerned and it is open to any patron to submit proposals to the Department for consideration. Any proposed change involves extensive consultation at local level and must be well planned and managed in a manner that accommodates the interests of students, parents, teachers, local communities and contributes to an inclusive education system. The Patron and relevant stakeholders are also advised to consider the implications that any change of status proposal may have on factors such as school accommodation, funding, staffing and school transport so that an informed decision can be made.

Since 2011, new arrangements have been in place for the establishment of new schools involving the forecasting of demand for school places based on demographic exercises carried out by the department. The criterion for schools ensures that all new schools are co-educational, but ethos is a matter for the patronage process. New schools are only established in areas of demographic growth as the resources available for school infrastructure must be prioritised to meet the needs of areas of significant population increase to ensure that every child has a school place.

Since 2020, my department has invested over €6 billion in our schools throughout the country and almost €0.7 billion in county Cork under the National Development Plan (NDP), involving the completion of over 1,375 school building projects. Government support for this investment, including by way of supplementary capital funding, has delivered real benefits for school communities. A recent Government decision has approved €210m supplementary capital funding for my department to support the provision of special education accommodation and meet school place needs. This brings the total capital allocation for 2025 for my department to €1.6bn.

As part of the NDP Review process, all departments, including my department, are currently engaging with the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform with respect to NDP allocations for the period 2026-2030. It is expected that there will be clarity on these allocations over the course of the summer period, and this will allow my department to plan its capital investment programme for the 2026 to 2030 period in line with prioritised needs and reflecting, as appropriate, wider Government priorities. Maximising existing capacity in schools to meet needs is very important. The progression of prioritised individual projects to meet the most urgent needs in the 2026 to 2030 period that cannot be met through existing capacity across schools in the local area will be considered on a rolling basis from Autumn onwards after the NDP allocations are finalised.