Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 260 of 18 December 2012, the reason the special education unit at a school (details supplied) in County Kildare was not equipped in any way at the time of opening and the reason, to date, only limited funding has been approved by his Department to enable the partial equipping of the unit; if the situation at the school will be addressed as a matter of urgency; if he will indicate with certainty that, in terms of equipment/furnishing, all special education units in PPP delivered post primary schools have been facilitated in a consistent manner; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1740/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The Special Education Unit (SNU) at the school referred to by the Deputy was not equipped at the time of construction as the type of unit to be established in the school was not known at that time. The school in question has been allocated funding of €6,500 for one special class plus €7,000 to purchase equipment for the schools Multi-Sensory Room. This level of funding is in accordance with the Department's current guidelines for funding SNUs and is provided to all primary and post-primary schools irrespective of the delivery method used. In addition, grant aid is available to all schools to fund the purchase of special items of furniture for special needs pupils. The scheme applies to all children who are diagnosed as having special needs. Schools must apply directly to the Department and their applications must be supported by a report from a professional who assessed the pupil. Only furniture approved by the Department will be funded.