Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 June 2023
103. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education when a three-classroom extension project at a school (details supplied) will progress; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30829/23]
View answerThe purpose of my Department’s Additional School Accommodation (ASA) programme is to ensure that essential classroom accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each year and where the need cannot be met by the school’s existing accommodation.
I can confirm to the Deputy that the school referred to was approved funding under my Department's ASA Scheme and responsibility for the delivery of this project has been devolved to the school authority. The original project was to provide three mainstream classrooms to replace temporary accommodation, three additional new classrooms, a multi sensory room and ancillary accommodation.
The school authority appointed a Design Team and submitted design options in their stage 1 report which is part of the architectural planning process. Professional and technical officials in my Department reviewed this report and visited the school on the 26th of May 2023 with a view to progressing the project. Technical guidance has already issued to the school authority in order to maximise the potential of the school site and further increase the number of classrooms included in the project given the challenges of increasing the size of accommodation in the future. Prior to progressing the project to the next stage, the school authority have been requested to submit a revised Stage 1 submission. While the onus is on the school authority to liaise with their Design Team in order to prepare a response for submission to my Department, my officials will continue to work closely with the school authority and its design team in order to ensure this important project progresses as quickly as possible. As a special school project, it is a key priority and I am anxious to have it delivered as quickly as possible.
This year, my Department will invest in excess of €2 billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget in the area of special educational needs support. As a result, the numbers of special education teachers, special needs assistants and special class and school places are at unprecedented levels.
Over the last two years, my Department and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) have worked closely on a more streamlined and joined up planning process which has ensured a targeted approach to meet demand for special education placements ahead of each new school year. The Department continues to work with the NCSE in relation to the requirements for special class and special school places and also the more strategic and longer-term requirements.
More generally, my Department has a strong track record of delivery of school building projects and this was achieved again in 2022 notwithstanding the wider construction sector environment of high inflation, labour shortages and supply chain issues. This is evidenced by the fact that there are currently 300 school building projects at construction stage and a further 1,000 at pre-construction stage.
