The Green Party is calling for school land to be protected from being sold for housing.

The party made the call following the sales of land at Our Lady's Grove in Goatstown and Clonkeen College, Blackrock.

Green Party Deputy Leader and TD for Dublin Rathdown Catherine Martin said: "The recent announcement of the sales of land at both Our Lady's Grove and Clonkeen College by their respective congregations have brought to the fore the issue of educational planning in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown. It is a stark indication of a lack of future planning and joined-up thinking on the part of the Department of Education and Skills. The community and their future needs are not being put first.

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"Minister Bruton needs to work closely with the Local Authority to provide greater protection for the open space requirements of institutional lands in the County. He also needs to work with Minister for Housing Simon Coveney to ensure that there is joined-up thinking in the provision of urgently needed new housing in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, while at the same time protecting the need for new and expanding schools in light of anticipated population growth in the area. The essential requirement of corresponding infrastructure provisions does not seem to feature at all and this defies planning logic and in essence is anti-community.

"25 primary schools in Dublin Rathdown alone are zoned as residential - this simply becomes unsustainable if an avalanche of land being sold off for residential purposes is permitted. An urgent local conversation followed immediately by protective, decisive action needs to happen. There needs to be a strong plan in place to provide assurances that educational needs in the County, both present and future needs, will be taken care of."

(CD/LM)