188. Deputy Gino Kenny asked the Minister for Education her Department’s plans with lands owned by the State that are adjacent to a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43749/24]

The Department of Education is in discussions with a developer on a potential disposal of the lands to the rear of the school referred to by the Deputy for the development of a public park and housing. These discussions to date have allowed for lands to be retained for the benefit of the aforementioned school.

The sustainable development plan of a settlement area and the planned use of the available development land is set out in County and Local Area Development Plans.

The land to the South of the school is zoned to provide for new residential communities in the South Dublin County Development Plan 2022-2028. There is also a Specific Local Objective (SLO) on these lands to identify and set aside land for a Public Park.

The future demand for school places in an area is directly linked to the number of existing and planned residential units. This department works closely with Local Authorities to ensure sufficient lands are zoned for educational use to meet the projected demand. To that end, a specific objective to provide school facilities has been provided on lands within the Newcastle development area in the South Dublin County Development Plan 2022-2028. These lands are adjacent to a large public park and public play facilities.

Any agreement to transfer lands for the development of housing and public park will include providing access to these specific lands for the development of the required school facilities.

The current negotiations include the transfer of land in the Newcastle area to the department for educational use. The purpose of these negotiations is to facilitate the development of Newcastle in a sustainable manner in keeping with the existing County & Local Development Plans.