Hopes Of 1,000-Pupil Curragh School Opening In 2026 "Unlikely" As Contractor Selection Months Away

Monday, 16 June 2025 15:32

By Martin Osborne

The Department of Education says a contractor won’t be appointed until near the end of this year, meaning construction is unlikely to begin before early 2026.

Hopes that the new Curragh Community College would open in 2026 are now in major doubt, as a contractor will not be appointed until near the end of this year.

The building project remains at tender stage, with a review of the tender returns currently underway by the Design Team at the Department of Education.

The Department says a contractor won’t be appointed until near the end of this year, meaning construction is unlikely to begin before early 2026.

The multi-million euro development at the former Magee Barracks site in Kildare is being delivered in two phases, with initial capacity for 425 students, and full accommodation for up to 1,000 pupils.

While planning permission was approved by An Bord Pleanála in February, the timeline has already seen significant delays due to further information requests and appeals.

This included, according to the Department of Housing, "a substantial Request for Further Information (RFI) from the Local Authority in respect of the planning application".

A Housing spokesperson told Kfm the project remains "a priority".

"The tender returns have recently been received and a review of the tender returns is currently ongoing by the Design Team to formulate a tender report for the Department’s review and comments. On completion of the tender report review by the Department the letter of intent (LOI) is expected to issue to the successful tenderer in early Q4 2025," the spokesperson said.

However, according to a source, the fact that the letter of intent to the successful builder is still months away, hopes of opening the school before September 2026 now don't appear likely.

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