Aisling Dolan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, for joining us. A year ago I tabled a similar matter and the Minister of State was also kind enough to respond on that occasion.

I am seeking an update from the Department of Education on the status of two school building projects in Ballinasloe in the context of capacity for children at primary level. I am referring to Scoil an Chroí Naofa, with which the Minister of State is familiar and also to the site acquisition for St. Teresa's Special School. The Minister of State has visited St. Teresa's Special School and is familiar with its location in Ballinasloe. I am seeking a response today on the status of these projects.

Since raising the project at Scoil an Chroí Naofa last year, there has been very positive engagement between the design team, the school's board of management, the principal, Ms Christine Connor, and Galway County Council. There were challenges related to access roads for the new school building and Galway County Council was to engage with the Department of Education to reach an agreement on how this would be managed going forward. The design team also had to add three additional classrooms to the plans, which have now gone back to the Department for review.

We need to move this on. I want to see this school building included in the Department's capital infrastructure plans for this year, as a priority project. We need to move this along so that it can be considered in June or July for the 2023 budget. Scoil an Chroí Naofa caters for close to 300 children.The children have to cross roads to get to the school, which was created in 1996. We are all aware of this. The families have gone through the school. There are parents - mums and dads - who were promised a school and who now have their own children going to the school. I would appreciate any update the Minister of State can give me on the issue.

Second, I am asking about the site acquisition for St. Teresa's Special School, which is dedicated to the education of children with moderate, severe and profound special needs and autism. We are very fortunate to have the school. The 11 students have now increased to 36. In the past week we have also seen an announcement for two extra classrooms for additional accommodation, which was very welcome, because the children there were in the canteen. They now have a space. I got to visit it last week with the Minister of State and the principal, Anita O'Reilly, and it was phenomenal to see the space that is there for children. As well as that, the Minister of State will be delighted to know that they held their own St. Patrick's Day parade a day before St. Patrick's Day. All the children came out festooned with decorations and were walking or in wheelchairs with their carers. It was pure joy for families and children in that school. We need to deliver a proper school and adequate space for the children. The Department of Education indicated that a 4-acre site had been secured with the HSE. Could I request an update on what stage this is at? Has the property been secured and is the process finalised? Is it at stage 1 preliminary design or has it moved to stage 2 design? Who is the contact for the board of management and the principal in the school?

I appreciate the Minister of State's time and her consideration of these questions. I acknowledge the work of the board of management with the special educational needs organisers, SENOs, who put forward the case to justify the need for the space in Ballinasloe. We want to welcome and support families coming to our area from Ukraine in our schools but how are we going to do that when we cannot even accommodate the children who are there at the moment? The schools are already over capacity.