Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As the Senator is well aware, the parents in a school community and in a school such as Ábalta Special School know best what their children need. While I cannot speak to the specific site as I am at a remove from the Department of Education, I will convey to the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, that it is the parents and members of the school community who know best what a child with additional needs requires, from the earliest intervention at Montessori level and right through the school journey. The Senator is correct to identify the site. Obviously, I do not have information about the site in terms of its ownership, the planning process, availability of the site and any related matters. I will, however, convey to the Minister of State that there is a need to recognise the views of the local community, school and stakeholders and ask her to make every effort to progress the site, if it is the correct one, and see what the possibilities are in the Department.