Parents in commuter belt counties are being warned to apply for more than one school amid a shortage of places for children.

Around half of Ireland’s secondary school are set to be oversubscribed for the coming school year – with Dublin and commuter belt counties set to face some of the largest shortages.

The Department of Education has said there is more than enough school places available around the country; however, areas that have experienced sharp population increases may face shortages.

On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, the National Association of Principals and Deputies (NAPD) said parents in “pinch point” areas should apply for more than one school.

“As a prudent parent, obviously you want to send your child to the school of choice or maybe where their friends are going, but in particular pinch point areas, if you only apply to one school and you find that your application has been unsuccessful, you may have a very worrying situation where you don’t have a place for your child to start next September,” said NAPD Director Paul Crone.

“So, the prudent advice would be to apply to a number of schools.”

Multiple acceptances

Mr Crone also warned parents against accepting more than one school place.

"I know schools in pinch point areas have been urged and encouraged, and they are working together to try and curb the issue of multiple enrolments and multiple acceptances,” he said.

“I know the department [of education] are upgrading their system – the post primary online database – where if a student accepts a place it’ll be flagged that they’ve already accepted a place, so maybe that’ll ease that multiple acceptance piece," he added.

Mr Crone acknowledged that enrolment is "a huge worry" for both parents and schools but added that "it's important that the department have come out and confirmed that there is capacity in the system".

Students in lesson at Secondary School, Image: Roger Askew/Alamy Stock Photo