Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 October 2023
290. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Education when the application for a new build for a school (details supplied) will be approved; the reason for the delay in making a decision on this application; when a modular building, which was to be in place for this autumn’s reopening of the school, will be in place for a new special class at the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42129/23]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, funding for a large scale building project for the school he refers was approved by my Department and devolved for delivery to the school authority.
Following receipt of the stage 1 (initial design), my Department's professional and technical officials shared their recommendations at a meeting with the school authority and its design team. My Department is now awaiting the submission of the design team's addendum report in order to facilitate the project's progression to the next stage of the architectural process. At this early stage and in advance of any necessary statutory approvals, It is not possible to provide a timeline for completion of the project.
The school authority in question was also granted approval under the Additional School Accommodation scheme for the provision of a Special Educational Needs classroom. This project is being delivered under the Department’s Devolved SEN Reconfiguration and Modular Accommodation programme.
This programme involves the use of Project Management supports which is designed to enable the accommodation to be provided as quickly as possible and help ease the administrative workload for school authorities in relation to the management and delivery of projects. The use of the Department’s Modular Accommodation Framework also assists in ensuring lead in periods for procurement of modular accommodation are minimised to the greatest extent possible. However, the wider context in relation to the overall modular market at present is challenging with modular accommodation suppliers being very busy across commercial, housing and other sectors. The Department is working closely with the Project Management team and the particular school's modular accommodation supplier to ensure the project is completed as quickly as possible which is likely to take about 3 months.
