Irish Vocational Education Association

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IVEA Welcomes Provision for 100,000 Permanent School Places Over Next Five Years
10 November 2011
The announcement today by Minister for Education and Skills Ruairí Quinn that €2.2 billion in capital funding for schools is to be made available over the next five years has been welcomed by the Irish Vocational Education Association (IVEA).
IVEA General Secretary Michael Moriarty says:
The announcement of the provision of over 100,000 permanent school places, which includes over 80,000 additional school places, is very welcome. It is good to see forward planning being undertaken to cater for the increased demand which will be created in the coming years by our recent soaring birth rates. Government projections show that there will be a need for over 20 new schools at primary level and another 20 at second level between now and 2017. The projections also indicate that over 180 existing primary and second-level schools in developing areas will need major extensions or new buildings between now and 2017 to cater for increased demand for pupil places, while a further large number of extensions will be required outside of these areas.
The Minister has also indicated that, given the number of projects to be delivered, his Department is putting in place enhanced and diverse delivery methods. In a major development, he recently announced that individual Vocational Education Committees (VECs) are to manage 27 school building projects around the country. VECs [soon to be reformed into Education and Training Boards (ETBs)] have extensive local knowledge and long experience of managing key building projects, and are well placed to provide school building project management support to other education and training service providers in their catchment areas, on request.
While IVEA recognises the financial constraints under which the government is working, we are glad to know that the Minister and his Department are prioritising school building projects to ensure that every child will have access to a school place.
The Irish Vocational Education Association (IVEA) is the representative body for the 33 Vocational Educational Committees (VECs) in Ireland, and works to protect, promote and enhance the interests of vocational education and training within the wider education sector and the country at large.
VECs deliver a wide range of educational services, from managing Community National Schools, second-level schools and colleges, Post Leaving Certificate colleges (PLCs) and education centres to providing training programmes for Travellers, adult literacy courses, prisoner education services, Youthreach programmes, Vocational Training Opportunities Schemes, and community education programmes.
VEC PLCs have developed a range of programmes and courses in response to the needs of industry and commerce which are certified by FETAC at levels 3 to 6, and by the professional bodies which set standards for entry into the professions.
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