Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 248: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she will report on plans to provide educational facilities in the new communities in Ballycullen and Fortunestown in Dublin 24; if her attention has been drawn to the fact that many families must bus their children to schools outside the area; the consultations she has had in the matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4110/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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My Department meets regularly with the planning department of South Dublin County Council with a view to identifying the need for additional educational provision and reserving sites for schools, where required. Arising from this process, sites for primary school purposes have been reserved in the Ballycullen and Fortunestown areas.

A decision on the provision of any new schools in these areas will involve further consultations with the local authority regarding the likely timescale for the delivery of proposed housing developments together with an ongoing assessment of the capacity of existing schools to meet anticipated demand.

With regard to Ballycullen specifically, a large scale building project for Ballycragh national school is progressing through the architectural planning process. This project will increase the school's capacity to 24 classrooms. I am satisfied that this measure will alleviate pressure for places in the area in the short to medium term.

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The project to which the Deputy refers is listed for proceeding to tender and construction over the next 12 to 15 months. My Department's building unit held general information meetings for all schools due to go to tender and construction in the next 12 to 15 months to guide them through the process involved in moving projects to tender and construction.

These meetings took place on 31 January and 1 February in Tullamore and the school in question attended the meeting. My Department expects to be in contact with the school in the coming weeks about the delivery of this project. It is not possible to outline the allocation of money that will be made available to this project until the tendering process is complete.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 250: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she has plans to establish a post primary school in the Laytown area of County Meath to cater for the expanding population in the area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4112/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, a new school planning model involving published area development plans is being piloted in five areas over the current school year. Laytown is included in the pilot scheme as part of an overall plan for the north Dublin, east Meath, south Louth area. The need for a new post-primary school in that area will be considered in this context.

The purpose of this new approach to school planning is to ensure that in future the provision of school infrastructure will be decided only after a transparent consultation process. Parents, trustees, sponsors of prospective new school and all interested parties from a locality will have the opportunity to have their voices heard in the process. Arising from this process, an individual plan will set out the blueprint for the future of educational provision in an area, which will be the basis on which all decisions about capital investment will be made for the next decade.

The draft plan for the north Dublin, east Meath and south Louth area is nearing completion in the school planning section of my Department and I hope to be in a position to publish it soon.