Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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429. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will support the retention of the mild general learning difficulties class in a school (details supplied) that has been in existence since the 1970s and now is being closed despite the requirement for it and the fact that children with Downes syndrome and other children with learning difficulties will now have to travel over 40km each way to a special school, if they can get a place, in order for their requirements to be met. [34184/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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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.

My department works closely with the NCSE on the forward planning of new special classes and additional special school places. Building on successive budgets, Budget 2025 secured funding for up to 400 new special classes in mainstream schools, and an additional 300 special school places for the 2025/26 school year. This will deliver 2,700 new places for children and will bring the total number of special classes nationwide to over 3,700. 155 of these are in County Tipperary of which 17 are new for the 2025/26 school year.

As the deputy is aware special classes are sanctioned based on known demand in local areas. This is important so that students are not required to travel long distances in order to access a special education placement. The NCSE has confirmed that they have been engaging with the school referred to by the Deputy in relation to the future of the mild general learning disability (MGLD) class in the school. The NCSE advise that there is no known demand in the area for this class going forward, although there is demand for another autism class.

As a result, it is anticipated that the class will be reclassified as a class for children with autism. The NCSE has discussed this matter with the school at a local level. The NCSE will continue to monitor the level of need at local level and engage with the school.