In March I announced details of 219 major school building projects which will begin construction over the next five years. This was in addition to the 56 major school building projects already announced for 2012. Due to financial constraints and the need to prioritise projects which will meet the increasing demographic needs over the coming years, it was not possible to include all projects in the 5 year programme.
There are another 33 major school building projects which were not included in the 5 year programme and which are currently at stage 2(b) of architectural planning. Three of these have completed stage 2(b). School building projects currently in architectural planning, including the projects referred to above, will continue to be advanced incrementally over time within the context of the funding available. However, in light of current competing demands on the Department’s capital budget, it is not possible to progress these projects to tender and construction at this time.