Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, to the House.

Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State. I understand he is not responsible for this matter but I appreciate his ear and I am sure he will take the message back to the Minister for Education in this regard.

Gaelscoileanna are the cornerstone of the spoken Irish language community in Ireland and against all odds have seen a welcome growth in our communities.Gaelscoil de hÍde, Ros Comáin, is one such school that has seen a surge in enrolment since first opening its doors 22 years ago. It was founded through the desire of parents and teachers for children to attend a Gaelscoil and to promote the spoken Irish language in our community. Its principal, Orla Ní Chuinneagáin, and her team of dedicated teachers and staff have continued a strong history of Irish language and culture in County Roscommon. Education through the Irish language in the county is now represented solely by Gaelscoil de hÍde, which is the last remaining school continuing our history of education through the medium of Irish. Historically, during the Penal Laws of the 17th century, there were more hedge schools in County Roscommon than in any other county in Ireland.

The parents, teachers and students of Gaelscoil de hÍde have long awaited the construction of a new purpose-built school that will reflect both the growth in demand for places and the present-day teaching needs of the primary school curriculum. At present, the school is based in a converted residential building that is limited by non-purpose design, inadequate space and leasing agreements. The good news is that there are plans for a new eight-classroom primary school building for Gaelscoil de hÍde in the Government's large-scale capital programme, as part of a shared education campus for Roscommon town. The parents and teachers would encourage this development, which still is at the planning stage, to move as quickly as possible. It will be hugely beneficial to the students and for education in County Roscommon. I know the Department is committed to dealing with this as quickly as possible but it does not address the current accommodation crisis. A new school is a solution for the future but the children who are completing their primary education at this time are suffering because of inadequate space and the inability to provide all the facilities that are needed, which means they are losing out on part of the curriculum. There must be action immediately to provide the new building. It must not be pushed further into the future while valuable learning opportunities for young people are lost.

In addition, the Government must respond to the present needs of the children attending the school. That is the point I really want to make today. Gaelscoil de hÍde needs two mainstream teachers. There are seven children with special needs, with the current special needs assistant, SNA, allocation working out at 1.5. This is way below what is needed. The allocation is based on the school profile and an average figure for the country. However, it is clear than an allocation of 1.5 is not adequate. More SNAs and more mainstream teachers are needed. I accept that the new campus will be a little way down the road. It can be speeded up as much as possible and it is important that this be done. Right now, however, the school needs extra teaching staff. It would be a pity for the pupils who attend the Gaelscoil, and for those who promote Gaeilge, that they should be left behind in any way in the education system.

I have a number of questions for the Minister of State. Why are Gaelscoileanna students currently in some of the largest classes in Europe? Why are Gaelscoileanna not receiving additional special educational needs support, despite the benefit it offers to students? Why are teacher resources based on only one variable, namely, student enrolment numbers? There are a number of other points that I may refer to in response to the Minister of State.

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir as ucht an t-ábhar seo a ardú inniu. I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister of State at the Department of Education, Deputy Madigan. The Senator has raised a number of questions. I wholeheartedly agree with him regarding the value of Gaelscoileanna. My children are being educated in Gaelscoil Osraí in Kilkenny, which started off in a prefabricated building and now has more than 500 pupils. It is a hugely successful school and does a fantastic job of passing on our language through education.

The Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, wants to stress that enabling students with additional needs to receive an education appropriate to their needs is an ongoing priority for the Government. She assures the Senator that students with special educational needs attending schools, including Gaelscoileanna, are treated in an equitable and fair way in regard to the allocation of special education teacher hours and SNA provision. All schools have access to a similar range of supports. Each child has unique skills and characteristics and it is vital that we ensure our schools and school staff have the resources and knowledge they need to provide a flexible and tailored approach to supporting all children, particularly those with additional needs.

The Department of Education funds a continuum of education provision for children with special educational needs. This extends from a placement in a mainstream class with the necessary additional teaching and care supports provided, through to a placement in a special class or special school. The policy aims to ensure students with special educational needs are educated alongside their peers where that is possible and appropriate. This approach is in the best interests of all children, including those with special needs. In Ireland, most children with special educational needs are educated in mainstream settings. That is the right way to do it. In circumstances where children and young people with special educational needs require more specialised interventions, a special class or special school places are provided. These settings cater for children with the most complex needs and attract much reduced ratios of teachers and SNAs to pupils, depending on the nature of the disability. The nature and level of the educational response, including placement in a special class or school setting, is based on the professionally assessed needs of each individual child.

This continuum of special education has been prioritised by the Government in recent years. This year, the Department of Education will spend in excess of €2 billion, or more than 25% of its total budget, on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. This represents an increase of over 60% in total expenditure since 2011. Significant additional investment in new teacher and SNA posts is provided for in 2022, which will expand provision across the continuum of special education. There is provision for 287 additional special classes, with 1,700 new places for the 2022-23 school year. This will bring the total number of special classes to 2,435. An additional 1,165 SNAs will be allocated to provide support to children with special educational needs, bringing the total number of SNAs to 19,169 by the end of December. There is provision for 980 new teaching posts in special education. There now are more than 14,000 special education teachers, SETs, in schools, who support the inclusion of students with special educational needs in mainstream classes. Two new special schools have opened in Cork and Dublin this year, with a further new special school announced for Rochestown in Cork for the 2022-23 school year.

The Department works closely with the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, to ensure children with special educational needs receive an education. A network of special educational needs organisers, SENOs, who are located across the country, are working closely with families and young people to access suitable school placements. I will follow up with the Senator on the other issues he raised. He asked about a new-build project, which is not really addressed in this response.

Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit as ucht an cheist seo a fhreagairt. I acknowledge that he is answering on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan. To be fair to both of them, I raised an additional issue in inquiring about the shortage of space and the plans for a new build. My question really was around the current shortage of teachers to deal with the number of students and the need to ensure all children get a fair crack of the whip in terms of education, particularly in Gaelscoileanna. Perhaps I should not have mixed up two separate issues.

The Minister of State noted that the Department of Education is allocating 25% of its budget, amounting to €2 billion in expenditure, to additional teaching care supports for children with special educational needs. However, as I said, the allocation is based on a school's profile and is taken as an average for the country. Gaelscoil de hÍde has seven children with special needs and an allocation of 1.5 SNAs. The school unquestionably needs at least one additional SNA. There must be a little flexibility in this regard. I intend to continue this fight and to talk directly to the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, and the Minister, Deputy Foley. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, for coming to the House to listen to my case and to take the message back to his colleagues.

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
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I assure the Senator that the thrust of the response the Minister of State has provided is that she wants to ensure the provision of additional resources to students with special educational needs extends to Gaelscoileanna in an equitable way. I will discuss with her the additional resources he is requesting, as I am sure he also will do.

The Senator also raised the issue of capital expenditure and the new campus to which he referred, which is critically important. As I said, looking at the expansion of Gaelscoil Osraí and other Gaelscoileanna across the country, they tend to start off small and then the demand for places grows. It is fantastic to see it. Similarly, Gaelscoil de hÍde will, with the support of the Department, continue to grow.