Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for her response. At the outset, I meant to acknowledge the good work that had been done in special needs education over the past decade in particular. We have more special needs assistants, SNAs, and special education teachers than ever before, but we must be cognisant of the fact we also have more children than ever with a diagnosis of some description on the spectrum. Hence the pressure we are under to facilitate places for them in special schools.

While I welcome the Minister of State's response, I would welcome any clarification she could give regarding the meetings in Cork between the NCSE, the Cope Foundation and her Department. In the initial technical report, three options were considered - short, medium and long-term. I understand the option of converting Montenotte House was the short-term option. Now that it seems to have been ruled out following the technical report submitted, will the Minister of State clarify what the medium- and long-term options are? Would they entail greenfield sites? I am aware the Cope Foundation has essentially offered its office and administration buildings in Montenotte for conversion into classrooms, which I have been informed could facilitate up to 25 or 30 children. If the Minister of State is aware of this offer, will she comment on it? This would not be about doing a short-term fix just for the sake of it. Not only would it be the quickest solution for the September 2021 intake, it would also be on campus with the existing facilities. It makes total sense to explore this option.

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