Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 December 2025
489. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Education and Youth the detailed timetable for delivering the addition 14,000 special-education places under the National Development Plan 2026–2030; the plan to complete 300 school-building projects; where those capital school projects will be; and the number which will be ready by the start of the 2026/27 school year; in tabular form. [72230/25]
View answerSince 2020, my department has invested over €6 billion in our schools throughout the country under the National Development Plan, involving the completion of over 1,300 school building projects. In addition, over 200 SEN Repurposing projects have been delivered maximising the use of existing accommodation while creating opportunities for inclusion and integration.
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 my 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.
Government departments are currently in the process of publishing their sectoral NDP Implementation Plans. The sectoral plan for the Education and Youth sector will be published shortly and the first tranche of projects to progress to construction will be published in January 2026. This NDP Implementation 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 current status of all projects is set out, under item number ten, at the following link (www.gov.ie). This is updated on a regular basis to reflect project progress through the various stages of capital appraisal, site acquisition, design, tender and construction.
