Duncan Smith (Dublin Fingal East, Labour)
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337. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to provide an update on the provision of additional accommodation at a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27632/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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This government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children with special educational needs.

As the Deputy will be aware, a major building project to provide a new school building for the school in question is being advanced. The project will be delivered under the Department's ADAPT Programme.

The ADAPT Programme uses a professional external Programme Manager to co-ordinate and drive the Design Team to achieve the best possible timeframe for the project through the stages of Architectural Planning to Tender and Construction.

The accommodation brief for this major project is the development of a new 24 classroom special school for pupils with special education needs.

The major building project for the school was recently approved to progress to Stage 2(a) of Architectural Planning – Developed Design, where the preferred agreed design option can be developed to a stage where the project is fully cost planned and can be prepared to lodge for statutory approvals.

On receipt of the Stage 2(a) Submission from the Design Team, and upon review, the Stage 2(a) Stakeholders meeting can then be arranged.

Until the statutory approvals have been secured, it is difficult to provide a timeframe for this project to progress to tender and construction stages.

As the Deputy may be aware parents were asked to contact the NCSE directly this year if seeking an educational placement. The NCSE were notified of just over 3,200 children requiring a special school or class place for the 2025/26 school year. Through the accelerated provision of additional special class and special school places over recent years, there are now just over 28,000 students enrolled in special classes and special schools. Budget 2025 provides for an additional 2,700 specialist places, made up of 400 new special class and 300 additional special school places. On top of this, there will be over 1,000 places available through the normal annual movement of students progressing from primary to post-primary and students graduating from post-primary or special schools. There also remains special class vacancies in some areas of the country.

Of the 400 new special classes places provided for in Budget 2025, the NCSE has advised that 399 of these classes have already been sanctioned for the 2025/26 school year. 287 at primary and 112 at post primary level. This will add to the 3,335 special classes currently in operation nationwide.

The list of new special classes is published on the NCSE website. There are 124 special schools operating across the country, with another 5 due to open for the coming school year. These are listed on the NCSE website also.

Eleven new special schools have been established in recent years and capacity has been expanded in a number of others. Five more special schools will be established for the 2025/26 school year in counties, Cork, Dublin (2), Monaghan and Tipperary. These new special schools established over recent years have focused on providing additional places in our largest urban areas – Dublin and Cork.

When looking to provide additional capacity the department’s preferred option is to increase provision in existing special schools, including the school referred to by the Deputy, if possible.

Where new special classes have been sanctioned, I would urge schools to progress the admission of students as soon as possible to ensure that the NCSE can continue to evaluate demand in local areas and assist parents in securing a special school place.