Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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440. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to examine the case of a person (details supplied) who is due to start senior cycle in a special school but is due to turn 18 this year and will be unable to finish senior cycle in that school; if an allowance can be made for this student to remain in the school. [62964/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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Special schools funded by my Department are classified as primary national schools. They are intended, in accordance with the provisions of rule 64(1) of the Rules for National Schools, to provide an education to children and young people, with special educational needs, aged from 4 years to until the end of the school year in which they reach their 18th year.

Special schools may however seek approval from my Department for an exemption from rule 64(1) in respect of students over the age of 18 who are pursuing courses leading to accreditation on the National Qualifications Framework (e.g. Senior Cycle, Junior Cycle Level One and Level Two learning programmes (L1L2LPs)/Leaving Cert Applied/QQI Level 3).

A request for an exemption from rule 64(1) can only be made by a school where in addition to the above:

1. The student requires one additional year in order to complete their course
2. Retaining the student in the school for another school year will not prevent a younger student being enrolled there and
3. Plans are in place to transition the student to a post-school setting at the end of the school year.