Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 February 2026
336. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Education and Youth the steps being taken to reduce delays in delivering permanent accommodation for rapidly growing schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15784/26]
View answerThe nature of a large capital programme is that timelines for delivery can vary. However, my department endeavours to manage the overall school building programme, across an estate incorporating 4,000 schools, to ensure that projects are delivered in the shortest possible timeframe. My department has a strong track record of delivery with over 1,400 completed school building projects, including large-scale projects, additional accommodation, and modular buildings delivered since 2020. The department also completed more than 4,000 smaller-scale school building improvements through emergency works and summer works schemes during this timeframe.
Delays can occur in large capital programmes for many reasons, including factors beyond the department’s control, for example identifying and acquiring a site, planning permission issues, procurement challenges. These factors are managed as effectively as possible whilst continuing to prioritise the most urgent projects where capacity is already fully utilised and deploying modular accommodation where near-term additional space is needed. The department also must manage the rollout of projects within the parameters of its NDP funding, the Capital Works Management Framework and the Infrastructure Guidelines.
I published our sectoral plan to give more clarity to schools, over 105 schools are included in the first tranche of projects going to tender and/or construction during 2026 and 2027. As part of planning ahead for the next tranche of projects to progress to tender, the department-led prioritisation process will continue over the course of 2026 and 2027 to assess and evaluate the progression of individual projects through the design pipeline having regard to the continual need to maximise existing capacity and determine the prioritised needs going forward. This process will involve engagement with key stakeholders and individual schools and will ultimately inform the next tranches of programme rollout to tender. The department-led Energy and Condition Survey of the school estate, which will be finalised later in 2026, will provide an additional evidence base for assessing priorities.
Based on this ongoing prioritisation process some projects may be added to the list over the course of 2026 and 2027 having regard to their prioritisation and urgency of need and taking account also of the ongoing ability to progress them to tender and construction within the parameters of overall funding. Where appropriate, the department will also assess opportunities to undertake advance enabling works for the most urgent and complex projects to facilitate a smooth progression to construction in 2028 and beyond.
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.
