Written answer
Schools Building Projects
Ard Scoil Mhuire, Corbally’s approved new building will accommodate 650 pupils, including five special education needs classrooms. The project has planning permission and is at detailed design review, but no confirmation was given that the special class will be operational by September 2029.
604. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether a special class is planned for a school (details supplied) as part of the proposal to construct a new building for the school; if a special class is included in the plans; and if it will be operational by September 2029. [65387/26]
Comment on this
The project referred to by the Deputy for Ard Scoil Mhuire, Corbally has been devolved to CEIST for delivery.
The approved project brief provides for the construction of a new post primary school building to accommodate a long-term projected enrolment of 650 pupils including 5 special education needs classrooms.
The project is currently at Stage 2b of the architectural design process. This allows for detailed design and planning, obtaining the necessary statutory permissions and the preparation of tender documents. Planning permission has been granted. A Stage 2b report has been submitted to the Department and is currently under review from a technical and cost perspective in line with the Government’s Infrastructure Guidelines. In addition, following receipt and assessment of a proposal in respect of enabling works associated with the building project, the Department has approved the enabling works project to proceed to tender.
A total capital allocation of €7.55 billion for the Department of Education and Youth has been confirmed for the period 2026-2030 under the National Development Plan. As part of this NDP allocation my department will place a strong emphasis on provision for children with special educational needs, with a particular focus on meeting annual school place needs. In relation to project rollout for Large-Scale projects and Additional School Accommodation scheme projects, the approach will be to continue to maximise the capacity of the existing school estate as much as possible in the first instance and provide necessary additional capacity through targeted and prioritised project rollout over the course of 2026 to 2030 period to meet the most urgent and prioritised needs.
As part of the NDP Implementation Plan for the education and youth sector, a first tranche of projects to progress to tender and/or construction during 2026 and 2027 was published in January 2026. Prioritisation will continue to identify further tranches of projects to proceed to tender and construction over the NDP period, with stakeholder consultation ongoing.
Our NDP Implementation Plan will optimise outputs from the NDP allocations, with a strong focus on maximising existing school capacity, progressing priority projects where local capacity across schools in the area is insufficient, and ensuring delivery that is affordable, offers value for money, and meets functional needs.
The current status of all projects continues to be set out under item number ten at the following link: www.gov.ie. This is updated on a regular basis to reflect project progress through the various stages of capital appraisal, site acquisition, design, tender and construction.