[ Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028, Section 15(2) Two-Year Progress Report ]
SDG 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
Targets under this goal relevant to the City Development Plan: Target 4.1 By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes. Target 4.2 By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and preprimary education so that they are ready for primary education. Target 4.3 By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university. Target 4.4 By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship. Target 4.7 By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development. Target 4.a Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non- violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all. While the City Development Plan has no direct role in the provision of formal education it contributes to Targets 4.1-4.4 and 4.a through its objectives to secure sufficient lands for crèches, schools, colleges and universities via its land-use zoning objectives, which identify specific sites exclusively for education use and facilitate educational uses across a broad range of land-use zonings in the Plan. The Plan offers strong support for third-level and further education and investment in innovation, through mechanisms that include the zoning of lands to accommodate the future expansion of Munster Technological University, and support for the expansion of Tyndall National Institute and the development of University College Cork’s Cork University Business School (CUBS) in the city centre. Since the adoption of the Plan these objectives have facilitated 12 planning approvals for a total of 308 (early years) childcare places with another 120 places in the planning process (as of time of writing), 3 extensions to primary schools, a new 600-pupil post-primary school, a new third-level business school and a change of use for a third-level institution. The Plan also supports associated programmes such as the Safe Routes to School programme which aims to create safer walking and cycling routes within communities and increase the number of learners walking and cycling to school. Cork City Council liaises directly with the Department of Education and, where applicable, third-level institutions in its plan-making functions when producing local framework plans under the City Development Plan. In relation to Target 4.7 Cork as a city has further developed as a UNESCO Learning City through ongoing engagement with the UNESCO Institute of Lifelong Learning and as a leading member of the Global Network of Learning Cities since 2013, which is supported in Objective 3.23 of the Plan.
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