James Geoghegan (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister for presiding over the opening of Harcourt Educate Together National School tomorrow. It will be a really important day for the people who campaigned for the school in the first instance and for the school community and the people who live within the school's environs.

In my constituency of Dublin Bay South, there will be three formal openings of Educate Together schools that I suspect which Minister will attend. Those schools are Shellybanks Sandymount Educate Together, Harold's Cross National School and Harold's Cross Educate Together Secondary School. These new schools will deliver new special school places. For the first time, I have seen a senior Minister for education prioritise this matter. The programme for Government assures the direct delivery of therapists in special schools. Will the Minister confirm that mainstream schools will also be part of this programme? The National Council for Special Education has run a very successful programme of direct delivery of therapists. That could make a massive difference, take the pressure off teachers and deliver the services we know so many children need.

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