Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber today and in particular for all the work she is doing and the commitment she has made in the past two years in regard to special education and inclusion. It is hugely significant. The impact is evident from the numbers of people working in the sector such as special needs assistants, SNAs, and the number of new classrooms being opened. Another 315 new classrooms are being opened in September. The impact of that in recent years is visible in any school or constituency in the country. The Department of Education is spending €2 billion on special education, which is more than at any time in the past. That is significant and represents about one quarter of the total budget of the Department.

Every couple of weeks, we see new school buildings or extensions being built in County Tipperary. A large new school has just been built and opened in Cahir in the past two weeks. In recent year, the Government has provided massive financial support for upgrading and extending school buildings and for new schools. Part of this has been for classrooms for special needs education, which is a requirement for all new buildings and extensions. This is really important. I see the need for those classrooms in Tipperary. When new classrooms are opened there is an influx of people who want to use them, and a waiting list as well. The demand is there.

In my parish of Ardfinnan I have spoken to the principal of the national school, Ms Bríd Quinlivan, a number of times. The school has had an occupational therapy room for more than ten years and it now needs upgrading, improvement and extra equipment. As Members know, all schools can apply under different schemes for funding for extra equipment and upgrading schools. However, due to the number of special educational classrooms and occupational therapy rooms in schools, it would be beneficial for the Department to provide for these rooms and classrooms separately in schemes. Ardfinnan National School was one of the first national schools to open an occupational therapy room. It accommodates about 32 pupils, which is about 10% of the total. The Department should have a scheme focused on upgrading facilities and equipment in special educational classrooms and occupational therapy rooms, rather than addressing this as part of a general scheme for upgrading classrooms. It would place a priority on principals and schools to identify the need to do this. The Department and the Minister of State have viewed this issue as a priority in the past two years. We support schools always, and the Minister of State in particular has done so in the past two years. However, a focused scheme would make it simpler for principals to identify what they can do in terms of upgrading and facilitating special education classrooms. As well as the principal, I spoke to a teacher in Ardfinnan National School, Monica Griffin. They are both very passionate about the work they do. All they want is the best for the kids who are with them every day. They love their jobs but it is about having the best equipment possible to serve the children in the school. I thank the Minister of State for coming in and for the support she has given this sector.

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Ahearn for raising this matter. My role as Minister of State with responsibility for special education and inclusion is to make sure we have sufficient special school places and, specifically pertinent to the Senator's question, to have special classes throughout the country and sufficient places for children with additional needs. There is no point having these classrooms unless they are properly kitted out and properly resourced and funded. That also applies to ancillary special education rooms such as occupational therapy rooms which the Senator mentioned. I am open to looking at a scheme to upgrade occupational therapy rooms. The Department tries to fast-track applications from schools that relate to trying to reconfigure existing accommodation.A minor works grant is available. It is €5,500, plus €18 per mainstream student and €74 per student per special class. That might be of assistance.

Once the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, sanctions a class, a school can apply to the Department for capital funding to reconfigure its existing spaces. The Senator will also be aware of the additional accommodation scheme to construct additional accommodation where it is needed. Interim accommodation can also be provided if no space is available pending the delivery of a new building. The Department works closely with schools, as I said, to fast-track any applications in this regard, although this involves a workload for staff. The Department funds external stakeholders engaged in the devolved delivery of building projects for individual schools. I am sure the same also applies in respect of rooms.

Senator Ahearn also mentioned equipment. His question was not specifically on this topic but it is important that he is aware of the grants available for special classes. There is a start-up grant of €6,500, an ICT grant of €6,700, a grant for a sensory room of €7,000 and a furniture grant of €2,500. Additionally, if special equipment is recommended by an occupational therapist, such as specialist chairs, tables, desks, changing benches or tables, hoists, etc., the NCSE and the Department can sanction grants for all those items.

Our school building programme has many different projects under way. Overall, some 1,300 school building projects are at various stages of design and planning and we are ramping up our efforts to provide additional places for children with special educational needs. When there are rooms, as I said, it is important that they can be reconfigured, reconstructed or re-equipped if necessary for the purposes that may be required in this context, particularly for the work of occupational therapists and speech and language therapists. If we are to move towards the school inclusion model in the future, we will need more capacity for occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and other therapists to provide their services to these children who require them so badly. Therefore, what the Senator is saying has merit and I am certainly open to exploring a separate scheme, perhaps, for therapy rooms, as distinct from special educational classrooms. I thank the Senator for raising this issue.

Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for her response and I am grateful that she will examine this issue. The problem will become more serious as time passes because of the amount of money the Minister of State has allocated to special classrooms and occupational therapy classrooms. If the Minister of State were open to this suggestion, it would be important for her to visit Ardfinnan National School. She has family connections in Kilcash. In her role as the Minister of State with special responsibility for special education and inclusion, it would be well worthwhile for her to visit Tipperary. I will bring her to Ardfinnan National School. She has already met one of the school's students, Cara Darmody. We have more than 300 other fantastic students who would also be grateful to meet the Minister of State and show her the facilities. It is a great school and is led by a fantastic principal, Ms Bríd Quinlivan. It would be a good opportunity to see where other schools will be in a few years' time if we do not put something in place to support them now.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State and I must have a chat about Kilcash sometime because my grandparents were from there. They were the principals of the boys and girls national schools, respectively. What is now the community centre in Kilcash was then their home.

Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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Senator Ahearn will need a bus to bring all the people to visit the school.

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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My mother was from Clonmel in County Tipperary. I am delighted to accept Senator Ahearn's invitation to come down to Tipperary and particularly to visit Ardfinnan National School. I have met the wonderful Cara Doherty. I am sure she did incredibly well in her junior certificate mathematics examinations. The school is to be commended.It sounds like a role model in that regard. I would be absolutely delighted to come down, see the room and perhaps discuss how we can assist the school into the future, and any other schools in the environs as well. It is always very helpful to me to visit not just mainstream schools, but also schools with special classes and special schools, of course, as well, to get that feedback and listen to what the people have to say. The people on the ground everyday working with children with additional needs know what is required to sort of make sure the students have as independent a life as they possibly can into the future. They need the wraparound supports in order to do that.

The school inclusion model trialled in February 2019 was interrupted because of Covid. It is back now on a trial under community healthcare organisation, CHO, 7. I hope it is something we can bring forward in the future, which will assist Ardfinnan National School also.