136. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Education and Youth the provisions in place to support students with additional needs through State exams, including provisions for schools to maintain access to special classrooms throughout the exam timetable. [10644/26]
Topics / Special Educational Needs
A subject heading for parliamentary questionsSpecial Educational Needs
2,921 questions from 146 TDs, between 22 January 2025 and 22 October 2026.
2,921
questions
2,881 written, 40 oral
146
TDs have asked
11
parties and groups
Independents counted together
5
departments asked
Questions per month
The record holds no questions for August, when the Dáil does not sit.
Jan 2025Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions |
|---|---|
| January 2025 | 31 |
| February 2025 | 124 |
| March 2025 | 114 |
| April 2025 | 160 |
| May 2025 | 134 |
| June 2025 | 183 |
| July 2025 | 215 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 113 |
| October 2025 | 76 |
| November 2025 | 191 |
| December 2025 | 122 |
| January 2026 | 163 |
| February 2026 | 283 |
| March 2026 | 270 |
| April 2026 | 167 |
| May 2026 | 181 |
| June 2026 | 171 |
| July 2026 | 101 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 44 |
| October 2026 | 78 |
Who asks, by party
The party each TD belonged to on the day, in alphabetical order. Parties differ a lot in size, and members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them, so this shows who raised it, not how much a party cares about it.
The TDs who asked most
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them. Each question counts once.
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139
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129
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115
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99
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92
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86
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80
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68
Asked of
Debated under the same heading
Debates whose official heading is exactly these words.
The questions
152. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether her Department maintains, receives, or collates any national dataset on the number of children in mainstream primary and post-primary schools who are placed on reduced or partial timetables for reasons related to additional or special educational needs; if so, the number recorded in each of the past five years, broken down by year and school l…
153. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether schools are required, under Departmental circulars, guidance, or policy, to formally notify her Department or an agency under her remit when a child ceases attending mainstream education, or is placed on a reduced timetable, due to the school stating it cannot meet the child’s additional or special educational needs; when such requirements wer…
154. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth to set out the legal basis, Departmental policy position, and any issued guidance governing the use of reduced or partial timetables for children with additional or special educational needs; the circumstances in which such timetables are considered permissible; the maximum duration envisaged under policy; and the safeguards in place to ensure reduced…
155. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth what mechanisms her Department uses to monitor and oversee cases where children with additional or special educational needs are no longer attending mainstream schools on a full-time basis, including cases involving reduced timetables, home tuition, or alternative provision; the specific indicators or thresholds that trigger Departmental review; and h…
156. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether her Department tracks educational pathways for children who exit mainstream schooling due to unmet additional or special educational needs, including subsequent placement in alternative education programmes, home tuition, or no provision; and if not, whether she will commit to establishing a tracking mechanism to ensure no child is effectively…
157. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Youth the plans there are to develop a further special school in south Tipperary (details supplied), given that the current schools are at full capacity and where a small rural school is at risk of closure due to falling numbers; if consideration would be given to converting such a school to a special education school; and if she will make a statement on…
160. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth to clarify the formal role of special educational needs organisers in cases where a child’s attendance at mainstream school is reduced or discontinued due to unmet needs; whether SENOs have authority to require schools to maintain full-time attendance where supports are lacking; and how her Department measures the effectiveness of SENO interventions i…
161. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether her Department has conducted, commissioned, or plans to undertake a policy review of reduced timetables and informal exclusionary practices affecting children with additional or special educational needs; the timeline for any such review; and whether the review will include mandatory reporting, data collection, and enforceable safeguards. [108…
169. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Education and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No’s 471, 472 and 473 of 4 February 2026, if her Department will commit to an audit of the actual figures of children currently waiting for a placement in each county per year (details supplied). [10886/26]
170. Deputy Gillian Toole asked the Minister for Education and Youth the interventions or supports that will be provided to children awaiting assessments for possible developmental delays; the unconfirmed requirement for a special class or school place, to support the children and their families; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10910/26]
506. Deputy Micheál Carrigy asked the Minister for Education and Youth the status of a special class that was pre-sanctioned by the National Council for Special Education in December 2025, in respect of a primary school (details supplied); to confirm whether her Department’s buildings unit has carried out, or is scheduled to carry out, a visit to assess any required building adaptations or modular accommodation; if t…
508. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Education and Youth if an application was received through Parents Notify before the 1 October 2025 deadline for a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9124/26]
509. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Education and Youth if the Parents Notify portal will be reopened in advance of the 2026/2027 school year for parents who may have missed the 1 October 2025 deadline, are therefore unable to get a letter of eligibility; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9125/26]
554. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Youth the status of the application by a school (details supplied) to open a second special educational needs class for the 2026-2027 academic year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9268/26]
555. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Education and Youth when parents who were unable to notify the NCSE of their child’s recommendation for a special class before the 1 October deadline will receive a letter of eligibility; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9269/26]
556. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her attention has been drawn to a child (details supplied) who does not yet have a SEN place for the coming school year; the actions she will take to address this case; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9271/26]
557. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will engage with the NCSE in relation to progressing a letter of eligibility for a child (details supplied) who requires this intervention to get a SEN place for the coming school year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9272/26]
605. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her attention has been drawn to the lack of ASD capacity in the Dublin 7 area for girls transitioning out of infant classes; if her Department is making the necessary arrangements to facilitate the opening of a second ASD class at a school in Dublin 7 (details supplied) to address this critical shortfall; the way in which her Department intend…
611. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Youth the status of an application for a special needs class (details supplied); if she will approve this class; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10063/26]
615. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if any review has been carried out in her Department in relation to the New Brunswick model of fully inclusive education; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10125/26]
616. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if any comparative analysis is being carried out in relation to the way the UK approaches inclusivity in SEN education; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10126/26]
617. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if any comparative analysis is being carried out in relation to the way other EU countries approach inclusivity in SEN education; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10127/26]
618. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if any review is being carried out into the parameters of the SNA role in classrooms that would expand the current remit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10128/26]
619. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if any review is being carried out into Circular 30/2014 related to the role of SNAs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10129/26]