To ask the Minister of Education how many children were unable to obtain a place at a nursery school in the East Antrim area in each of the last five years.

Funded pre-school places are available in statutory nursery schools and nursery units attached to primary schools and in voluntary/private settings in receipt of funding under the Pre-School Education Expansion Programme.

The aim of the Programme is to provide a funded pre-school place for every child, in their final pre-school year, whose parent wishes to avail of it.

It is not possible to determine the number of children who did not get a place in a nursery school as, in applying for a funded place, parents are invited to list a number of preferences across the range of statutory and voluntary/private providers. When a setting is unable to accommodate a child the application is passed on to the next provider on the parent’s list of preferences. A child is not considered to be unplaced until all parental preferences on an application form have been exhausted.

The table below, therefore, shows the number of children, in their final pre-school year, who did not get a pre-school place in any DE funded setting in the East Antrim* area in the last five years:

* The North Eastern Education and Library Board define the East Antrim area as being Newtownabbey, Larne and Carrickfergus Council areas.