Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 February 2024
44. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will report on the funding allocation to date and the timeframe for the development of Cavan Institute as a hub for further education and training; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8782/24]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that over the course of 2023, Cavan Monaghan ETB (CMETB) were supported by SOLAS in developing their Preliminary Business Case (PBC) proposal for Cavan town under the FET College of the Future Major Projects fund. The development of a robust PBC is fundamental to the requirements of the Infrastructure Guidelines.
CMETB submitted their business case for their FET College of the Future major project to SOLAS in January of this year, and as part of this business case, CMETB have undertaken significant work in developing a proposal that outlines the infrastructure needs for their region.
The Cavan town proposal is one of twelve FET College of the Future major project proposals that are now being considered by SOLAS and my Department under criteria such as value for money, affordability, strategic policy and priority alignment. These business cases will also need to be evaluated in line with the requirements of the infrastructure guidelines.
SOLAS will work closely with relevant ETBs including CMETB in progressing their FET College of the Future Major Project fund proposals to achieve the development of required infrastructure that meet the needs of their FET learners. I will be meeting Solas this week to be briefed on the next steps.
To address interim accommodation needs, I approved the acquisition and fit out of a substantial modular unit for CMETB at a cost of €5.8m. This facilitated the opening of the new Education and Training Facility for Cavan Institute at CMETB FET Campus in 2023. This facility gives 300 students access to a range of PLC programmes and will allow for the further growth of Cavan Institute to offer state of the art facilities for students and staff.
