Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1050. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of schools in Dublin Bay North currently using prefabs as classrooms in 2024; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47482/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Prefabricated accommodation in schools may be rented or purchased and funded by the Department or by the school authority itself, with or without Department sanction. For that reason, it is not possible to provide the Deputy with a complete picture in respect of all prefabricated accommodation at schools as requested.

Within the context of a rapidly increasing school population my Department's priority is to ensure that every child has access to a physical school place. In this regard, it is sometimes necessary to make use of prefabricated accommodation, in order to meet the accommodation needs of schools.

The timing and duration of the accommodation need is also considered in determining the optimum accommodation solution - a short-term accommodation requirement does not require a long-term accommodation solution. For example, a school may require a temporary building in circumstances where a major school construction project is planned. Such temporary accommodation is removed when the major project concerned is completed. The length of time it is necessary to make use of temporary rented accommodation will vary from project to project.

My Department is additionally taking an integrated approach with the Prefab Replacement Programme through the replacement of prefabricated units as part of large-scale and devolved projects and as part of new projects approved under the Additional School Accommodation scheme.

In relation to the Dublin Bay North area, I can confirm to the Deputy that there are currently 9 ongoing contracts with prefabricated building suppliers for Mainstream classes for 6 schools. The information is attached. I can also confirm that 5 of these schools have large scale building projects for accommodation which are being delivered under the School Building Programme. It is expected that once the projects are delivered for these schools this will remove the need for the prefabricated accommodation.

The Deputy will appreciate that it is not possible to give an indication of the timelines for the completions of these projects, which are subject to various factors such as statutory approvals and procurement processes. However, these projects will continue to be advanced as part of my Department's overall capital programme and in line with the Government's Infrastructure Guidelines.

Since 2020, my Department has invested over €6 billion in our schools throughout the country under the National Development Plan, involving the completion of over 1,400 school building projects. Government support for this investment, including by way of supplementary capital funding, has delivered real benefits for school communities. Supplementary capital funding of €210 million approved by Government has brought the total capital allocation for 2025 for my department to €1.6 billion.

Good progress continues to be made with the rollout of projects, and the current status of projects being delivered is listed in tabular format, on a county by county basis, on the Department’s website at www.gov.ie and is updated regularly