Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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339. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of children who are involved in the school enrolment pilot scheme who have not been offered a school place, to date in 2025. [65146/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The Apply to School pilot was introduced to simplify and improve the admissions process for post-primary schools in five pilot areas. This new system provides families, for the first time, with a single online application and introduces synchronised, streamlined timelines for schools to manage admissions, issue offers, and update a central database to record accepted places.

I wish to advise the Deputy that schools continue to operate in line with the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 and their own Admissions Policies. Under this process, some applicants may receive more than one offer, while others may not receive an offer until later in the process. The centralised system helps identify duplicate acceptances and supports families in achieving certainty on school places earlier.

As part of this process, a second round of offers will be issued on 4 December. This ensures that any places that become available after the first round are allocated fairly and that every child is considered.

I want to reassure parents that there are sufficient first-year places in each pilot area for local children seeking a place. The Department will closely monitor the outcomes of the admissions process to ensure that all local children are accommodated and to identify any required solutions if necessary. The Apply to School pilot will provide early clarity and robust data to support this commitment.

I can assure the Deputy department officials will continue to work in consultation with stakeholders to develop an evidence-informed, tested, equitable solution for a nationwide Common Application System and to deliver this in an incremental way that ensures the admissions process safeguards the best interest of children.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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340. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if a school (details supplied) has any remaining space for students who have not received an offer under the new school enrolment pilot scheme; and if she will ensure that children who need a place will be offered one in Q1 2026. [65147/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The Apply to School pilot was introduced to simplify and improve the admissions process for post-primary schools in five pilot areas. This new system provides families, for the first time, with a single online application and introduces synchronised, streamlined timelines for schools to manage admissions, issue offers, and update a central database to record accepted places.

I wish to advise the Deputy that schools continue to operate in line with the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 and their own Admissions Policies. Under this process, some applicants may receive more than one offer, while others may not receive an offer until later in the process. The centralised system helps identify duplicate acceptances and supports families in achieving certainty on school places earlier.

As part of this process, a second round of offers will be issued on 4 December. This ensures that any places that become available after the first round are allocated fairly and that every child is considered.

I want to reassure parents that there are sufficient first-year places in each pilot area for local children seeking a place. The Department will closely monitor the outcomes of the admissions process to ensure that all local children are accommodated and to identify any required solutions if necessary. The Apply to School pilot will provide early clarity and robust data to support this commitment.

I can assure the Deputy department officials will continue to work in consultation with stakeholders to develop an evidence-informed, tested, equitable solution for a nationwide Common Application System and to deliver this in an incremental way that ensures the admissions process safeguards the best interest of children.

Shane Moynihan (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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341. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the current number of secondary school places, for the Lucan school planning area, by school, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65183/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that the availability of places is a matter for each individual school in the context of their Admissions legislation. Enrolment data for previous school years is available on the Department website. Enrolment data for the 2024/25 school year is available on the Departments website at www.gov.ie.

There are 8 secondary schools in the Lucan school planning area. As per my department's analysis of the Lucan school planning area for the 2024/25 academic year, there were more first year places available than 6th class children and 3.84% of first year places were unfilled.

I can assure the Deputy that my department will continue to keep the school place requirements in Lucan school planning area, as with other areas across the country, under review.

Shane Moynihan (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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342. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the projected number of secondary school places for 2030, for the Lucan school planning area, by school, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65184/25]

Shane Moynihan (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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343. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the projected number of secondary school places for 2035, for the Lucan school planning area, by school, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65185/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 342 and 343 together.

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.

Major new residential developments have the potential to alter the demand for school places at a local level. In that regard, as part of the demographic demand analysis, my department monitors planning and construction activity in the residential sector. This involves the analysis of data sources from local authorities and the CSO along with the engagement with local authorities and the construction sector. In this way, up-to-date information on significant new residential developments is obtained and factored into the demographic analysis exercise. This is necessary to ensure that schools infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes, at a local level, where there is a constantly evolving picture with planned new residential development.

Where demographic data indicates that additional provision is required, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the circumstances of each case and may, be provided through:

• Utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools,

• Extending the capacity of a school or schools,

• Provision of a new school or schools.

If additional accommodation is required, the aim to try and facilitate this, as much as possible, by way of expansion of existing schools rather than establishing new schools. The expansion of existing schools is consistent with wider Government objectives under Project Ireland 2040 for an increased emphasis on compact growth. In respect of post primary schools, new post primary schools must have a student enrolment capacity of 600-1,000 students and must be co-educational. A lower threshold of 400 students may apply to gaelcholáistí, having regard to the alternative of establishing an Irish-medium unit (aonad) in an English-medium school.

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 so as to ensure that every child has a school place.

The Lucan School Planning Area includes two Strategic Development Zones (SDZs) at Adamstown and Clonburris. A significant number of new residential units have been developed in these areas and many more are planned. There is an associated demand for school places with the development of new houses. However, due to the reduction in birth rates and family sizes, the school place demand per house has reduced in recent years. Similarly, the demand for school places in the older residential areas in Lucan has reduced significantly. As a consequence and despite the completion of a significant number of new houses the enrolment numbers in the 17 primary schools peaked in 2022 and has reduced in recent years. While the demand for post primary school places are continuing to rise, it is projected to peak in the coming years. As it stands, if no more houses were to be delivered in Lucan the demand for places in the existing 8 post primary schools in 2030 would be 5-10% lower than current levels.

These demand figures will be heavily influenced by the number of new houses delivered and when they are completed.

Therefore, to ensure alignment of school provision with the rollout of additional residential development, the department, through the various consultation phases of the Statutory Plan process, liaises with South Dublin County Council in respect of their County Development Plan, all associated variations, Local Area Plans and Masterplans with a view to identifying any medium to potential long-term school place and accommodation requirements across school planning areas and with the purpose of ensuring that there is an adequate amount of appropriately zoned and suitably located sites for future school place provision, which are in line with objectives as identified in the National Planning Framework. The recently announced revised housing targets will see an intensification of the Statutory Plan process for the foreseeable future. The specific detail on the amount of proposed additional residential developments and the proposed rate of delivery is awaited and this will inform the timing of additional school requirements beyond 2030. My department officials, who have consistently engaged in this process throughout 2025, will continue to do so going forward into 2026 and beyond.

All Government departments are expected to publish their sectoral NDP Implementation Plans in November. My department’s 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.