Three major Wicklow secondary school builds stalled despite a tender approval

By Hugh O'Farrell Walsh, The Wicklow People

Three major secondary school building projects in west Wicklow remain stuck in planning despite one of them, Blessington Community College, having been formally approved to proceed to tender earlier this year.

A written parliamentary reply by Education Minister Hildegarde Naughton to Wicklow TD Edward Timmins outlines the status of the three projects, but offers no firm timelines for when construction will begin.

Blessington Community College, the largest of the three projects, was included in the first tranche of school building projects cleared to move to tender under the National Development Plan Implementation Plan published in January.

That announcement was welcomed locally as a long‑awaited breakthrough for a school that has been operating under severe capacity pressure. However, the minister’s latest update reveals that the project has not yet moved into the active tendering phase.

The school remains at Stage 2B of the architectural design process, with the department still reviewing the Stage 2B report from a technical and cost perspective. Until that review is completed and signed off, the tender cannot be issued.

The minister noted that officials continue to engage with the Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB) on the timing of progression, but no date has been provided for when the tender will actually be published.

In Dunlavin, St Kevin’s Community College is also at Stage 2B, despite having secured full planning permission in 2024. The project is being delivered through the National Development Finance Agency as part of the Project Dargle bundle of school builds.

While bundling is intended to streamline procurement, it can also slow down individual projects if others in the bundle lag behind. The minister’s reply states that the relevant officials will continue to engage with the school authority, but again no timeline for tender or construction has been offered.

Scoil Chonglais in Baltinglass has been approved for a substantial extension under the Additional School Accommodation Scheme. The project includes new general classrooms, specialist rooms for music, textiles, technology and home economics, two science laboratories with a shared preparation area, and a two‑classroom SEN base. Approval to proceed to Stage 2B was granted in February 2025, and the project has been devolved to KWETB for delivery.

As with the other schools, the Department says it will continue to provide guidance and support, but no indication has been given of when the project might advance to tender or construction.

While the minister’s reply provides detailed descriptions of each project’s administrative status, it quickly shifts to national level figures. She highlights €6.7 billion invested in school infrastructure since 2020, more than 1,400 school building projects completed, and over 4,000 small‑scale improvement works delivered. She also points to the Government’s July 2025 announcement of €7.55 billion in capital funding for the Department of Education and Youth for 2026–2030.

However, none of these national commitments translate into concrete timelines for the three west Wicklow schools. The NDP Implementation Plan published in January lists the first tranche of projects to proceed to tender or construction in 2026–27, and while Blessington Community College is included in that tranche, the minister’s reply confirms that the project has not yet cleared the final pre‑tender hurdles.