Linda Nelson Murray (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Sarah and Darren Hennessy to the Gallery. I welcome any conversations about special education. I am on the board of a fabulous special school, Saint Ultan's, in Navan, County Meath. I am delighted to discuss all of this with the Minister of State.

Like everyone in this room who are working with many children trying to access school places, this issue is very close to our hearts. I wish to talk about Willow Carroll, whose mum, Tracy, would knock anyone out in a boxing ring such is her determination to fight for disability rights and for fairness for her daughter and children like her daughter. I disagree with one part of the motion where it states: "the failure of successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael Governments to adequately plan for and invest in the expansion of special education". There is €2.9 billion allocated in 2025 to support the provision of special education and that is a 48% increase since 2020.

Going back to Willow's mum, Tracy, she, like many other parents, sent out letters and begged special schools to take her daughter into their educational setting. Willow is a very special girl who has severe, complex needs but she is a little beauty and a little fighter like her mum. Like many other mums, Tracy got refusal letter after refusal letter. However, Tracy, deciding not to give up and determined to avail of the inclusivity model, approached a mainstream school that her son Noah was attending. It is a wonderful school. Cathal Ó Bric is the principal of Boyerstown National School, outside Navan. The wheels were set in motion between Tracy, the school, the Minister of State with responsibility for special education at the time, Josepha Madigan, the Minister of State with responsibility for disability at the time, Senator Anne Rabbitte, the NCSE, the SENO, myself and the Deputy I worked for. Senators should witness what that rainbow classroom is like. In true Willow form, she is taught in that class, in her own way, along with three other girls and a new boy starting in September, all by teacher, Geraldine, and the nurse staff.

What this Government has done is ensure that five kids with very complex special needs in Navan are going to school along with other schoolmates. I do not disagree with what everyone is saying about wanting and needing to do more. We need to; we have to. Every child deserves an education. I am simply saying that we are working on it and achieving classrooms like the rainbow room. That is a classroom every child deserves. We need equitable seats in a class that are appropriate for a child's needs. Our approach needs to be child-centred and what is most important is that we listen to their voices and plan ahead. Let us imagine a situation where children with additional needs have a choice of school within their own communities with therapies on-site. I am confident that my colleagues, the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, will ensure that investment continues in education for these children and their families.