Michael Healy-Rae
Ceist:47. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Youth if an extension to a school (details supplied) will be approved; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6668/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraWednesday, 28 January 2026
Ceisteanna (47)
Freagraí scríofa
The school referred to by the Deputy was approved to enter my Departments pipeline of school buildings for a project to provide the removal of existing prefabricated buildings and replacement with a two-storey extension consisting of three mainstream classrooms, seven special education tuition (SET) resource rooms and a three classroom base special educational needs (SEN) unit, along with all associated facilities and site services, which includes revised car parking and set down facilities.
This project has been devolved to the Kerry Education and Training Board (KETB).
In September 2025, my Department received the Stage 3 Tender Report. Following this, additional information was requested to identify potential cost-saving measures and design efficiencies aimed at reducing the overall project cost. A response was received in December 2025 and is currently under review from both technical and financial perspectives, in line with the requirements of the Public Spending Code. Once the review is completed, the outcome will be communicated to the school authority to keep them fully informed of progress.
In July 2025, 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. As part of this NDP allocation my Department will place a strong emphasis on provision for children with special educational needs, with a particular focus on meeting annual school place needs. In relation to rollout for Large-Scale projects and Additional School Accommodation scheme projects, the approach will be to continue to maximise the capacity of the existing school estate as much as possible in the first instance and provide necessary additional capacity through targeted and prioritised project rollout over the course of 2026 to 2030 period to meet the most urgent and prioritised needs.
The NDP Implementation Plan for the Education and Youth sector and the first tranche of projects to progress to construction has been published by my Department. 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.