Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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335. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update on the school project (details supplied) and if she will engage with the school on the works as a matter of urgency; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67212/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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The school to which the Deputy refers was approved to enter the Department's pipeline for a project under the Additional School Accommodation scheme. The project will provide one Science lab & prep area, one Construction Studies room & prep area, one Multimedia Room, one Music room, two class SEN base and project store.

The Stage 2b Report for the project was received by my department in November 2025 and is currently being reviewed from both a technical and cost perspective in accordance with the requirements of the Public Spending Code. All projects, including this one, will undergo the necessary due diligence outlined in the public Infrastructure Guidelines.

Furthermore, as part of this NDP allocation my 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 year. 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 NDP implementation plan will be considered as part of the ongoing review of this school building project. Once the NDP implementation plan is finalised my Department will be in a position to inform the school with the outcome for the progression of this much needed project.