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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 19 Apr 2000

Vol. 518 No. 4

Written Answers. - Schools Refurbishment.

Ivor Callely

Ceist:

41 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Education and Science the funding available to primary and secondary schools in the Dublin area to carry out improvement works such as wiring and installation of a communications system, computer and information technology; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11720/00]

Primary and post-primary schools may apply to the planning and building unit of my Department for funding in respect of the items referred to by the Deputy. Such applications will be considered by my Department in the context of the funding available for capital works and other competing priorities.

In addition, a devolved grant is paid to all primary schools on an annual basis. The purpose of this grant is to enable school authorities to undertake minor improvement works at their own discretion without further departmental involvement. The level of funding under the grant in 2000 will be £3,000 per school plus £10 per pupil enrolled. Depending on a school's priorities and the nature and cost of the work involved, this grant could also be used to finance the provision of the items referred to by the Deputy.
A capital allocation of £20 million has also been provided for each of the three years 2000-02 to build on the progress made to date under the Schools IT 2000 programme by further developing the integration of information and communication technologies in all 4,000 primary and post-primary schools in the country. This funding will be used to ensure that every classroom is connected to the Internet with high-speed access within the next three years and to provide further computer hardware and software to schools generally.
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