Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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86. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her Department is planning to change the approach to the planning and delivery of schools to ensure that new urban fast growth zones can see schools built in a timely manner; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30484/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Planning for school provision takes full account of local dynamics, including faster growth in urban areas linked to residential development.

In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, the Department of Education divides the country into 314 school planning areas.

The Department uses a Geographic Information System, which facilitates the analysis of data from a range of sources, including CSO Census data, Child Benefit and school enrolment data, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise and where additional school accommodation is needed at primary and post-primary level.

As part of the demographic demand analysis, my Department also factors in planning and construction activity in the residential sector. This involves the analysis of data sources from Local Authorities and the CSO, along with engagement with local authorities. This ensures that schools infrastructure planning is keeping pace with demographic changes at a local level, where the picture can quickly evolve due to planned new residential development.

My Department also conducts granular analysis below the level of a school planning area, particularly where a school planning area encompasses both high growth urban settlement areas and a more rural hinterland. Our analysis of school place demand in urban areas experiencing high population growth has indicated that demand in the urban area can be 10-20% higher than the school planning area as a whole.

To ensure alignment of school provision with roll-out of additional residential development, the Department liaises with all 31 Local Authorities in respect of the County Development Plans and any associated Local Area Plans with a view to identifying any potential long-term school accommodation requirements across school planning areas. My Department engages with all consultation phases of these plans to ensure that there is an adequate amount of appropriately zoned and suitably located sites for future school place provision and that they are in line with objectives as identified in the National Planning Framework. Department officials made 61 submissions to County Development Plans and Local Area Plans in 2023.

Where demographic data indicates that additional provision is required, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the particular circumstances of each case and may, be provided through:

• Utilising existing unused capacity within a school or schools,
• Extending the capacity of a school or schools,
• Provision of a new school or schools.