Michael Moynihan

There is ongoing engagement. We have given information in terms of the projects that are going to go ahead. As always, there is constant engagement with all parties to make sure we understand and deliver. We want to constantly deliver in terms of education in respect of our projects moving across the country. Deputies from all sides of the House have identified challenges that we have, no more so …

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. Monaghan Community Special School is one of five new special schools established in the most recent school year. It is operating under the patronage of the Cavan Monaghan ETB. The school supports 18 children and young people aged between four and 18 with a diagnosis of autism and complex needs, or students with complex learning needs with a professional re…

I take the point and it is crucial. A lot of planning and work has gone into opening 16 special schools in recent years. This was coming on the back of the State not providing special schools over the years because of international policy, and we can debate this left, right and centre. I was chair of the education committee 20 years ago when there was mainstreaming. There are a number of issues we…

I thank the Deputy and welcome the opportunity to speak on St. Marnock's National School in Portmarnock, County Dublin. The Deputy has been liaising with the Department in relation to this issue. The school is under the patronage of the Archdiocese of Dublin and is in the Portmarnock school planning area. Last September, the school had an enrolment of 638 pupils and 26 mainstream teachers, three …

Modular accommodation was approved for the school in question last May. It is near completion in relation to special education classrooms as well. I have looked at the enrolments and staffing in the school. I can share that information on enrolments from 2020 to date with the Deputy. I assure him that the Minister and I are acutely aware of this issue. We look at where the pressures are in primary…

I thank all Members who contributed to the debate over the past number of hours. It is a reflection of the commitment of all Deputies in relation to special education. The work in the communities was very much reflected in the contributions I have heard. Supporting children with additional education is very much at the core of the Government's values. We have put a huge amount of investment into i…

I thank Sinn Féin for the opportunity to contribute to the debate this evening. Debates like these are essential to reflect on the deeply held priorities for our communities. I want to state absolutely clearly that this Government is fully committed to supporting children with additional needs. This commitment is not merely a matter of policy but a matter of principle and is reflected in the cont…

I am always encouraged when we have cross-party Members bringing issues to the floor of the Dáil, and the sincerity of it. At the outset, I know of the school the Deputies are referring to, and I have engaged with the principal previously on some issues. Deputy Lahart brought this to my attention last week as well. I will talk through the issues. I have a script that will be handed out, and Membe…

In the few minutes available to me, I will say that I will meet with the Deputies and further engage with the principal as well because we did engage. I will go through that. The worrying thing is that because there is one student or students within it - we will just say "students" - there is a medical need that is developing within the school and that has become more profound or needy. Is one of…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I will set out the position on behalf of Minister, Deputy Naughton, regarding the shortage of mainstream school places in Dunshaughlin, County Meath. The provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post-primary level, including children and young people with special educational needs, is a priority for me, the…

I take the seriousness of the point the Deputy is making in relation to Dunshaughlin. He has outlined the challenges in an area with a growing population of students and young people. I will take the point the Deputy made on the national school that when that is completed, the project will need to move on. I know other parts of the country as well where there are significant challenges in meeting …

The four issues brought to my attention prior to coming to the House concern St. Mochta’s, Monksland and Shelagh national schools and car parking issues at the new build for Ardee Educate Together primary school. The Deputy raised other issues that I might come back to in my closing remarks. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The Department of education has invested a serious amount of m…

I take the point. There is ongoing engagement. On the Educate Together-----

That project has been completed. As for the other two projects, one is moving through. Both of the applications were made in the autumn of last year. I will ask the Department to ensure there is a timely discussion with them. The Deputy made a point regarding school accommodation and children being located in buildings that are not fit for purpose. Children are in primary school for eight crucial…

A script will be handed around, but I will deal with the issue without the script. I thank all Members for their engagement and the seriousness with which they are treating this issue. I take on board all of the matters that have been raised. I will talk about the policy first. Since the 2014 document, more than 12,000 extra SNAs have been recruited and are working in the system. We have expanded…

The basis on which we are delivering special needs assistants is under the 2014 circular, which has allowed us to grow the SNA workforce by nearly 60%. It is a whole-of-government approach. It is a very serious issue for families and school communities. We are all engaged. The Minister, Deputy Naughton, and I have had multiple conversations and meetings over the past number of days and weeks, righ…

I thank the Deputy for the question and will speak a little on the information I received from the Department. In relation to widows, widowers and the surviving pension, we have done some work on expanding the scheme for civil partners or cohabiting partners over the past while as well. The challenge is when somebody is widowed, a man or woman, they work and then get ill themselves, going from tw…

The Deputy mentioned the carer's allowance. The half-rate carer's allowance was brought in. Former Deputy Joe Callanan from east Galway and I put a motion before the Fianna Fáil Parliamentary Party many years ago regarding the half-rate carer's allowance. We had been banging our heads off a stone wall for some time but Séamus Brennan, the then Minister, accepted our bona fides, particularly as reg…

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. He has outlined a specific issue on the floor of the Dáil. I do not have the exact details of the case, but I will speak to it. If the Deputy could furnish the details afterwards, I will certainly do what I can to help. The woman the Deputy spoke about is doing extraordinary work. She has a 22-year-old, a 25-year-old and a 17-year-old. Looking at the sums…

The case the Deputy has outlined is extremely disturbing. At the core is the care that is being provided and the concerns of the mother, who has a vocation, about the care she is getting. That is one side of it. The other side of it is the amount of money the State is spending and that figure of €74 versus €18.50. A lot of section 38 and section 39 organisations around the country have invested an…

The Government is committed to continuing the acceleration of the provision of additional special class and special school places for 2026-27 by providing at least 3,000 new spaces in locations which are best meeting the existing and future demand. The provision of timely information is a key requirement to support the forward planning of new special education provision. Budget 2026 provides fund…

The NCSE is currently working through to make sure that the letters of eligibility are being issued to those who contacted it after 1 October. The Taoiseach is right in reflecting what both the Minister, Deputy Naughton, and I have seen as the huge increase in the number of children who have contacted the NCSE, both prior to and post 1 October. To reiterate, 1 October was hugely significant in or…

On the seriousness with which the NCSE and the Department are taking the numbers, we have worked throughout - right up to almost Christmas, to 23 December - to make sure we had sight of what figures were and how we are going to work on it. At the end of this discussion, there are children and there are families and it is hugely important we give certainty to them. As the Deputy quite rightly ackn…

I thank the Deputy for providing me with the opportunity to respond. As he knows, this Government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to achieve their full potential. The primary responsibility for the education of all pupils, including those with special educational needs, is the class teacher or subject teacher. The special education teaching allocation prov…

We must accept that we have put a huge amount of resources into special education, particularly for SNAs and SETs. In this year's budget, it was one of the sectors that got the greatest increase. We are deeply committed. Whether in mainstream, special classes or special schools, the strength of our special educational system is based upon SNAs. They do amazing work in school communities. They enab…