Brendan Smith
Question:674. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Education when a school project (details supplied) will proceed to the next stage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2087/25]
View answerSchools Building Projects
Questions (674)
Written answers
The school to which the Deputy refers was approved to enter the department’s pipeline of projects under the Additional School Accommodation Scheme for the provision of 11 General Classrooms, 3 SET rooms, 1 Multimedia room, 1 Textiles room, 1 Science lab/Prep area, 2 Classroom SEN base and the removal of 3 Prefabs. An additional SEN Base was added to the project a few months after the initial approval was granted.
The project has been devolved to Mayo Sligo Leitrim Education and Training Board (MSLETB) for delivery.
This project is currently at Stage 1 pending the submission of a Stage 1 report, and will be required to go through further stages and assessment for planning and tendering prior to the project being approved to construction.
Each of these steps require a significant amount of time, but are crucial to maintain our commitment to excellence and to deliver the best possible outcome for this project in line with my Departments Infrastructure Guidelines.
It is currently not possible at this early stage to give the Deputy a timeframe as to when this school project will go to construction.
Schools Building Projects
Questions (675)
Mark Wall
Question:675. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Education the status of a proposed school in south Kildare (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2131/25]
View answerWritten answers
As you are aware enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for government. Thanks to considerable investment in special education in recent years the vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. Where children with more complex needs require additional supports, special classes and special school places are provided.
Working groups to support the establishment of Craddockstown School in Kildare along with three others in counties Limerick, Meath and Wexford were established in early 2024. All schools commenced enrolment shortly thereafter and Craddockstown School opened for students in September 2024.
One of the first steps when establishing a new school is to identify suitable sites for its location, this involves amongst other things, ensuring the site is capable of meeting the envisioned long-term needs of the school and examining if these sites require reconfiguration or indeed major building works. While this work progresses, interim arrangements are put in place to meet the school's short-term needs. This allows schools to begin planning, and start to enrol students and recruit staff as quickly as possible. The initial start up location for Craddockstown School is Craddockstown Education Campus beside Naas Community National School.
My department continues to examine potential sites for the school's long-term location and this will be confirmed in due course. My department and the NCSE have also begun preparatory work in relation to planning for the provision of further new special class, special school places and the establishment of a further five new special schools for the 2025/26 school year.
Schools Building Projects
Questions (676)
Mark Wall
Question:676. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Education the status of the new secondary school in Kildare south (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2113/25]
View answerWritten answers
The major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is being delivered as part of my Department's ADAPT Programme.
The Design Team lodged the application for planning permission for the preferred design option with the Local Authority in October 2023. The Design Team subsequently received a substantial Request for Further Information (RFI) from the Local Authority in respect of the planning application. Following the Design Teams RFI response to the Local Authority, the Design Team received the Local Authority’s initial decision to grant planning permission, with conditions, on 09 October 2024.
The initial grant of planning decision has since been appealed to An Bord Pleanála. A decision is awaited.
This project is a priority for my Department but until all statutory applications have been secured, it will not be possible to provide an estimated on site date.