Brian Brennan (Wicklow-Wexford, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

74. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the progress of a school building project (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52465/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The project referred to by the Deputy has been devolved for delivery to the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) as part of a bundled school building programme.

The project is currently at Stage 2b of the architectural process (Pre-Tender Stage). The NDFA are currently working to conclude the pre-tender stage following which a Stage 2b report will be submitted to the Department. Once the Stage 2b report is received, reviewed and approved the next stage will be to tender for a contractor and onwards to construction in due course.

The length of time a project takes to deliver depends on several factors, including scale and complexity and is subject to the time it takes to progress through the various design stages and the statutory approval process.

My department is committed to ensuring appropriate school accommodation is available for all children in the Arklow area and will in the wider context outlined, ensure that this project - as for all projects on our school building programme - is subject to the due diligence required under the public 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 the Department to €1.6 billion.

In July, the Government announced a capital allocation of €7.55 billion for the Department of Education and Youth for the period 2026-2030 under the National Development Plan. As part of this NDP allocation the Department will place a strong emphasis on provision for children with special educational needs, with a particular focus on meeting annual school place needs.

In relation to project roll out for Large-Scale projects and Additional School Accommodation scheme projects, the approach will be to continue to maximise the capacity of the existing school estate as much as possible in the first instance and provide necessary additional capacity through targeted and prioritised project roll out over the course of 2026 to 2030 period to meet the most urgent and prioritised needs.

My department is now preparing an NDP implementation plan which is due for publication later in the Autumn. This plan will optimise outputs from the NDP allocations, with a strong focus on maximising existing school capacity, progressing priority projects where local capacity across schools in the area is insufficient, and ensuring delivery that is affordable, offers value for money, and meets functional needs.

The position on individual projects within the overall school building pipeline of projects evolves all the time and the current status of all projects are listed on a county-by-county basis at www.gov.ie.