Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Solidarity)
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260. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will review the case of a child (details supplied) who has been diagnosed with autism while in secondary school and needs a place in an ASD unit; and in view of the fact the child’s current school does not have such a unit, to be facilitated in transferring to another school with an appropriate unit. [50918/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is, in the first instance, the primary body responsible for the matter the Deputy has raised. Deputies are welcome to raise such queries with the NCSE directly through their dedicated Oireachtas query line at oireachtasqueries@ncse.ie.

Local special educational needs organisers (SENOs) remain available to support and advise parents on the options available at a local level for students with special educational needs. If the Deputy wishes to provide the parent's contact details I will ensure that the NCSE contacts the parents in this regard. Parents can also contact their local SENOs directly using the contact information available on the NCSE's website.

I wish to stress that any family seeking a special educational placement for the 2026/27 school year should make contact with the NCSE before the 1 October 2025.

In order to support the NCSE and forward planning my department published Circular 0039/2025. This circular informs school management and patrons of measures introduced to support forward planning going forward and reiterates the need for parents to inform the NCSE that they are seeking a special educational placement for their child. An earlier date of 1 October has been set in which parents must do so.

This notification will provide the NCSE with valuable information as to which children will continue to require a special class as they progress to post-primary level and details on students who require a place for the first time. The NCSE is actively communicating this requirement nationally also.

The earlier date will allow for earlier sanctioning of classes for the 2026/27 school year, and it is the aim of the NCSE to sanction the majority of new special classes by 31 December 2025.

Parents can make initial contact, submit reports and provide consent forms directly via the NCSE’s website (ncse.ie/notify-ncse-special-class-special-school), emailing parentsnotify@ncse.ie or calling 01 603 3346.

My department and the NCSE are committed to ensuring that sufficient special education placements remain available for children with special educational needs.