615. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Education and Youth the status of the planned new school building project for a school in County Clare (details supplied); the timeline for the progression of this project; when it is expected to advance to the formal planning and design stages; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65715/26]

The school building project referred to by the deputy is currently planned to be delivered as part of Phase 2 of my Department's ADAPT 4 Programme which uses extensive programme manager supports and professional Integrated Project Teams to achieve the best possible timeframe for the project through the stages of Architectural Planning, to Tender and Construction.

The brief for this major project is the delivery of a new 400 pupil post primary school plus accommodation for pupils with special educational needs.

The next step is the procurement of the Integrated Project Team (Design Team).

The department is working through the necessary planning and governance steps towards the commencement of the procurement of the Integrated Project Team.

Since 2020, my department has invested over €7 billion in our schools throughout the country under the National Development Plan, involving the completion of over 1,600 school building projects along with over 4,300 small-scale improvement works to meet priority maintenance needs and advance energy efficiency and climate goal. In addition, repurposing and optimisation of existing accommodation capacity across the school estate has been a key enabler of timely, local provision of special class capacity in a way that supports best practice in inclusion and integration. In the region of 85% of new special classes in 2026/27 are being facilitated in repurposed classroom accommodation. This investment has delivered real benefits for school communities.

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.

• Since 2020, the Department of Education has provided over €171 million in capital funding for Clare schools.

• Over this period, a total of 37 schools have been upgraded through provision of either a new school building, extension, modular accommodation or climate pathfinder projects.

• 2 school projects to go to tender or construction in 2026 and 2027 were included in the NDP Implementation Plan.

• There are currently 5 large-scale, extension, modular or climate pathfinder projects in Clare under construction.

• There are also 9 projects underway through the Climate Action Summer Works Scheme.

• In addition, since 2020 a total of 50 special classes have been sanctioned in Clare, of which 12 were sanctioned for September 2026.