Aisling Dolan (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister and Minister of State and thank the Minster for her update this morning. I wish the over 2,500 leaving certificate students sitting the written exams well. It is fantastic. I wish the same to 60,000 students who received calculated grades.

I pay tribute to the Minister and Minister of State, the Department, teachers and parents for coming together and getting over 1 million students back to school, it is phenomenal. In my own are of east County Galway and County Roscommon I have spoken to principals and teachers and am aware that there is anxiety, particularly about overcrowding. On the 25:1 pupil-teacher ratio in schools, if I am correct we are looking at over 1,065 teachers being hired and of those 400 will be in special education. How many of those teachers are in place or what is the timeline for when they will be? I am aware of another challenge from our own school out in Creagh, near Ballinasloe. It has 28 to 29 pupils per classroom. Where is the space going to be found for these students and teachers? We in Ballinasloe are the only ones in County Galway with a primary school at DEIS level 1. The pupil-teacher ratio change did not apply to DEIS schools. They have a lower ratio to begin with but will these schools be considered for the support and help they need, especially when dealing with children with high levels of complex needs?

On disadvantage, community and support groups across the country are seeing a huge need for food packs to families. I am particularly interested in the school meals programme. I am aware that this is cross-departmental and involves the Department of Social Protection as well as the social inclusion unit of the Department of Education. What steps are being taken here? I am thinking in particular of secondary schools in DEIS areas or Pobal deprivation areas that are seeing huge need from their students for lunches, breakfasts and so on.

Principals are at breaking point. The Minister mentioned teacher well-being and well-being supports in her opening statement. I am very happy to see that. What other administrative supports are being put in place to support principals in this really stressful and challenging time?

I ask also about the roll-out of the school inclusion project.