Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)

On some level everyone has got the issue in relation to parents that are still coming to us. I have spoken to the Minister of State about a number of issues, some of which have been somewhat settled relating to kids with challenges having an appropriate place next year. However, there is one particular issue. The easiest way to get it across is to quote from correspondence. I am not going into the details of the school. It is a national school. A mother has contacted me saying:

One of my little girls has Down's syndrome. I have just left a meeting in her school having learned that she will be in a class of 36 students in September as they have lost the teaching post. The reason they have lost the post is because they had an enrolment of 280 students on 30 September 2024 and the retention figures were 281. The school did lodge an appeal, but they now have 284 on the books.

We can all understand the circumstances and the situation. This will create an issue for all of the children in that class, but specifically for this child. I will speak to the Minister of State afterwards in regard to the details. The issue had been brought to my attention before by staff. It is something that needs to be addressed.

Last week, we understood that approximately 262 kids do not have an appropriate place. The number is not absolutely clear. What are the figures at the minute for kids with special needs? We all know that we need more units. We know that we need to make sure that there is far more efficiency in the Department as regards the build programme. Schools have spoken about the issues they have had in interactions with the Department. Beyond that, it is making sure we have the resources. We also have to look at the admissions policy. There have been changes, but we need to ensure parents have an opportunity to contact schools earlier. I have my own legislation, which referenced two years beforehand.