AQW 5356/16-21

Ms Kellie Armstrong
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 13/10/2016
Answered On Date: 27/10/2016
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education , pursuant to AQW 4172/16-21, to outline (i) why capital viability has not been achieved; and (ii) the discussions he has had with the Education Authority in relation to the school.

Answer:

The Department’s “Schools for the Future – A Policy for Sustainable Schools” (SSP) requires new post-primary schools to achieve minimum intakes of 50 pupils in the first year, 80 in the second year and 100 each year thereafter in anticipation that a minimum enrolment of 500 in Years 8-12 will be achieved. The 2015/16 enrolment at Blackwater Integrated College was 213, which falls below the SSP minimum threshold. Therefore the school has not yet met the criteria to quality for capital funding.

The school needs to be considered within the context of Area Planning to ensure sustainable provision of post-primary integrated education in this area.

Departmental officials have had discussions with the Education Authority in relation to urgent works at the school.