Thomas Gould
Question:115. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Education and Youth for an update on an application by a school (details supplied). [31061/26]
View answerWednesday, 29 April 2026
Questions (115)
Written answers
The school to which the Deputy refers was approved to enter my Department's pipeline of projects under the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) Scheme. The project will provide five general classrooms, one special education tuition (SET) room and a two class special educational needs (SEN) base. The project is devolved to the school authority for delivery.
This project is currently at Stage 2a (developed design). A Stage 2a report, which outlines the proposed design and associated costings, was submitted to my Department on 02 March 2026. This report is currently under review from both a technical and cost perspective. All school building projects, including this one, will undergo the necessary due diligence as outlined in the Infrastructure Guidelines. Managing timing, scope, and cost is crucial in ensuring that the overall school building programme remains within the funding parameters.
As the Deputy will be aware, I have recently published the €7.55 billion NDP Sectoral Investment Plan for the Education and Youth Sectors for the period 2026 to 2030. 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, my 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.
My department has a strong track record of delivering the Government’s School Building Programme with over €6 billion invested since 2020.
The accommodation needs at this school will be considered as part of the ongoing overall department-led prioritisation process, in consultation with the school’s patron and school authorities.