Michael Moynihan
Cork North-West · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“I cannot emphasise enough the respect that the Minister, Deputy Naughton, and I have for special needs assistants and the contribution they make to education. In March, we met the SNAs to have further engagement and consultation with them and to understand their roles.”
“We are very conscious of the issue. A huge number of groups that I have met over the past while, particularly on the dyslexia side, have all been discussing assistive technologies. That is also the case for children who are non-communicative and non-verbal. Assistive technologies are extremely important for them.”
“By way of background, 85% of the applications processed for assistive technology between January and June have been approved. We are always conscious of those who fall outside the scheme.”
“The approximate cost to the State per mainstream pupil is currently €1,400 annually, while the cost to the family is €100 per pupil. The total cost of the school transport system in 2025 was €537 million, equating to almost €3 million being spent on the provision of school transport per day.”
“I thank the Deputy. We are looking at ways to ensure that if there is a ticket issued, it will be used. Anecdotally, the Deputy and other colleagues tell us about school routes the length and breadth of the country that have spare capacity but, when we look at the system, all of the tickets on that particular school route are occupied and…”
“Under the current scheme, schools receive funding towards computers and specialised equipment required for educational purposes. To qualify, a student must have a diagnosis of a physical or commutative disability and a professional assessment confirming the equipment is essential to access the curriculum.”
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“I thank the Senator for her question on school transport. The School Transport 2030 report, which was published in early 2024, marks the largest review of the school transport system since it was established in the late 1960s. I am committed to working to achieve the report's recommendation of expanding access to the scheme so that an additional 100,000 pupils can be carried by 2030 and to continue to improve the scheme so it provides a valued service to those families who rely on it, while providing value for money for the Exchequer. The recommended changes to the future operation of the scheme include the expansion of the current eligibility criteria, addressing current operational challenges and moving towards better integration with public transport where possible.”
“Yes, three and a half years is a long time, but I might just answer the Senator’s question on inclusivity. I know about the great work that is being done in Milltown National School and the inclusivity there, which she mentioned, and the way the school has embraced all the challenges and changes within the education system. That has to be acknowledged, both from a school leadership point of view and thanks to all those who are working within the school. I acknowledge that and wish them well on it. I will see whether we can move to the next stage to get a report as a matter of urgency on the documentation that was submitted in August 2024. Again, I wish the Senator the best of luck in the Upper House and thank her for the courtesy and co-operation with which we worked together so well in the previous Dáil at the disability committee.”
“I will ensure there is a response in a timely fashion to the documentation that was submitted in August 2024, and I will report back to the Senator in a timely fashion. It is important that we keep these projects moving because, as the Senator has outlined, there has been significant growth in the school population, from 56 pupils to 174. It is important that the project is progressed. We will report back to the Senator as a matter of urgency.”
“These processes include stage approval reviews which challenges all elements of design and specification. They are an essential element of good cost control and supports market interest in our school buildings As the Senator said, Milltown National School is currently at stage 1 and the school submitted a stage 1 report to the Department in August 2024. This report is currently under review from a technical and cost perspective, as outlined in the public infrastructure guidelines. As the Senator may know, a significant amount of money has been invested by the Department over the past while in school building projects and this will continue. I will take the important issues the Senator raised regarding Milltown National School back to the Department.”
“As the Senator will be aware, the project referred to was approved to enter the Department's pipeline for school building projects and responsibility for delivery has been devolved to the school authority locally. A design team has been appointed to design the accommodation being provided and to bring the project through the tender and construction phases. Projects progress from stage to stage in accordance with the project brief and the Department’s design guidelines. Under the ASA scheme the Department has detailed procedures in place for the appraisal, design, tender and construction of all school building projects. Design team procedures define the points in the project lifecycle at which approval must be sought from the Department, which aligns with the infrastructure guidelines to ensure there is proper accountability.”
“I thank the Senator for the opportunity to discuss this matter and, more importantly, I congratulate her on her election to Seanad Éireann. I thank her for the work she did as vice chair of the disability matters committee in the Thirty-third Dáil. The dedication and commitment to her job was second to none. We had a hugely important role and the committee worked well across the political divide. On allowing the project in Milltown National School in Belturbet, County Cavan, to proceed to stage 2, I thank the Deputy for raising the matter because it gives me an opportunity to update Seanad Éireann on the current position regarding the additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme for the school. My Department has approved a brief for the project, which includes the provision of two mainstream classrooms, two SET rooms and one SEN base.”
“We must also bring certainty to families in the earlier part of the school cycle so they know where their children are going in September eight or nine months to a year before that and not having a huge issue as is happening at the moment.”
“We are moving to have a centralised portal to make sure there is a centralised system for application. On challenges parents have in finding places, particularly at primary level, and we have 218 sanctioned and huge work is ongoing at departmental level to sanction more, it is a key priority for me and the whole of the Government to make sure that stress of finding places is limited because parents have enough going on. We want to ensure there is a streamlined process. We will work with might and main to make sure that happens. We will work with parents, the NCSE and the Department of Education to ensure a streamlined process. What has happened heretofore is not acceptable into the future.”
“Some of the long-established Gaelscoileanna and Gaelcholáistí, primary and post-primary schools that have developed across the country in the past 25 or 30 years, contrary to the criteria we now apply, were set up by local groups and in small entities. They have flourished and grown. I take the point that certain criteria are stifling development. I will take this specific issue back to the Department and will get a reply. I can continue on in relation to patronage. The Deputy fully understands the issues that are there and the system in place. I will not labour the point. I will take back his concerns and will see that a reply is issued to him. I understand what he is saying.”
“The group then reports to the Minister on the patronage of the school. Following their consideration of the Department's assessment reports, the new schools establishment group, NSEG, submits a report with recommendations to the Minister for consideration and final decision. The assessment reports and the NSEG recommendations for all such patronage processes are made available on the education section of the Government website.”
“Parents can then access the appropriate survey for their area, to input the details of the eligible child or children and to select their preferred patron and language of instruction, with the exception of the Irish-medium primary Gaelscoileanna that have been designated as an Irish medium prior to the opening of the OPPS. In the case of those schools, parents can select their preferred patron. Parental preferences, as well as other considerations, such as the extent of diversity of provision in an area, are key to the decision-making process and to whether at post-primary level a school would take the form of a Gaelscoileanna or whether, if English medium, the school would include an Irish-medium unit. The patronage process for new schools is overseen by an external independent advisory group.”
“An online patronage process system, OPPS, has been in operation under the Department since 2018 and provides objective information to parents in the relevant school planning areas to assist them in making an informed choice about their preferred model of patronage and language of instruction for the new school. When the Department announces that a new school entity is required, a prospective patron can choose the school it wishes to apply for and complete an application form in that regard for each school for submission to the Department. The Department provides details on the OPPS of the school and the list of applicant patrons which have applied for patronage of the school.”
“New schools are only established in areas of demographic growth as the resources available for school infrastructure have to be prioritised to meet the needs of areas of significant population increase so as to ensure that every child has a school place. These new arrangements also give an opportunity to patrons to apply for the patronage of new schools. The criteria used in deciding on the patronage of new schools place a particular emphasis on parental preference, as the Deputy referenced, language preferences and an analysis of existing provision in the areas where the schools are being established. This approach is underpinned by a 2011 Government decision. The patronage process is open to all patron bodies and prospective patrons.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of the criteria for school patronage. He mentioned a specific issue in his own constituency. The reply I have relates to the specifics of how school patronage works. I will outline that and might come back to him later on the specific issue, if that is okay. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. It gives me the opportunity to report to Dáil Éireann the position with regard to the selection of school patronage for newly established schools. Since 2011, new arrangements have been in place for the establishment of new schools involving the forecasting of demand for school places based on the demographic exercises carried out by the Department of Education.”
“We also know there are issues with getting school places. The important thing is that the parents continue to engage with the school authorities. The Department is constantly monitoring where the pressures are to try to address this. It is a fact that the Department, together with school communities the length and breadth of the country, is going to work might and main to ensure every child has a proper place, be it at primary or secondary level, come September. The information needs to be with parents and children much earlier in the school cycle.”
“The Deputy mentioned someone waiting for an ASD class. Since I was appointed just over four weeks ago, we have had considerable engagement with senior officials in the Department and the National Council for Special Education to ensure sufficient places for children with additional needs come September. We have moved the discussion back from one later in the year. Our aim is to move it back further to have certainly for all children, particularly those with additional needs. Families are under enough pressure. I am working with the officials in the Department, and I feel very strongly about this matter. Like every other Deputy, I have met the parents and know the challenges and issues that exist. On school places, we understand that huge population growth is taking place in Fingal West.”
“These measures include improvements to the post-primary online database student registration system to help identify students who have accepted multiple places, writing to parents of sixth class children with advice on the admissions process, including Fingal West, and strengthening the data-sharing arrangements with schools in areas of enrolment pressure.”
“While there can be enrolment pressures in some areas experiencing significant demographic growth, at both primary and post-primary level there is school accommodation capacity either in or near all areas of the country. To assist with the enrolment of children without a school place, the Department shares information on available capacity with the education welfare service, which is part of Tusla's educational support service and which operates under the Education (Welfare) Act 2000, legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. My Department has put in place a number of measures to support post-primary schools in managing and effectively co-ordinating their admissions processes.”
“There is also an extension under way at Balbriggan Community College to provide for a long-term projected enrolment of 1,000 pupils, with two special education classrooms. A project was also completed recently for Lusk Community College. This provided accommodation for a long-term projected enrolment of 1,000 and two special education classrooms. Nationally, Ireland has been experiencing growth in overall post-primary enrolment, and this is projected to continue in many parts of the country for the coming years before declining. However, first-year enrolments are expected to be found to have peaked nationally in the 2023-24 school year. They will begin to decline from this year. At primary level, there is generally good capacity across the country, although there are some areas under continuing demographic pressure.”
“Molaga's National School in Balbriggan, which will provide 19 mainstream classrooms and two special education classrooms. The project is currently at stage 3 - procurement. In addition, there is a new school building project under way for Rush National School, which will provide 32 mainstream classrooms and two special education classrooms. The project is at construction stage. A project was also recently completed for Rush and Lusk Educate Together National School, providing a brand new, state-of-the-art 16-classroom school and two special education classrooms. At post-primary level, there is a project under way for St. Joseph's Secondary School in Rush, which will provide accommodation for 1,000 pupils plus four special education classrooms. This project is currently at stage 2b.”
“Enrolment pressures can be driven by duplications of applications, applications from outside an area, and school-of-choice factors. Since 2020, the Department of Education has invested more than €5.7 billion in schools throughout the country, involving the completion of more than 1,150 school building projects and with construction under way at approximately 300 other projects, which includes 40 new school buildings. The 300 projects currently at construction involve a total State investment of more than €1.3 billion. The Department has invested more than €1.3 billion in school infrastructure in County Dublin over the period since 2020. With regard to Fingal West, there are a number of active projects at primary and post-primary levels in progress, which will increase capacity. These projects include a new school building project for St.”
“I thank Deputy O'Reilly very much for the question about additional school places in Fingal West. I thank her for raising this matter, which gives me the opportunity to set out to the Dáil the position with regard to a shortfall of school places at both primary and secondary levels in Fingal West. It is an absolute priority to ensure that every child in the State has access to a school place. The Department of Education is continually planning for and investing in existing and new schools to ensure this is the case. The annual enrolment process for new junior infants at primary level and new first years at post-primary level is a very large-scale operation that is transacted at close to 4,000 schools throughout the country, involving some 140,000 pupils.”
“I thank the Deputy. I accept the point. In the departmental documents, it is clearly stated there is no direct internal connection to other facilities. The Department clearly understands the challenges in Clonlara. What we have to do now is ensure the project proceeds through the various stages so the building can be got up and running. I commit to working with the Deputy to ensure this happens in a timely fashion.”
“The proposed brief was issued by the Department and the board of management very recently accepted this proposed brief of accommodation. The next steps will involve finalising the formal project brief, which will allow the school authority to be approved to commence the procurement process for the design team.”
“There is no doubt that when lived experiences of being and working in the classrooms is brought to the floor of the Chamber, it brings the matter very much to life in the political forum. Clonlara school applied for major capital works. An application is assessed following the site visit by the Department’s technical team. A brief of accommodation was issued to the board of management. This brief included the proposal for the demolition of the 1968 school building, which was poorly insulated and lacks direct internal connections to the old facilities, and for removing all prefabs currently on site once the additional accommodation is delivered. The proposed brief of additional accommodation consists of seven mainstream classrooms, three special education tuition rooms and two education classes. Currently, no SEN class is open.”
“The accommodation brief will include replacing some existing accommodation to provide new modern facilities and increased capacity for the school. The school authority notified my Department last week that it welcomes and accepts this project brief. The next steps will involve finalising the formal project brief, which will then enable the school authority to be approved to commence the procurement process for the design team.”
“Between projects currently under construction and projects moving to construction in this latest phase, investments by the Department of Education are adding more than 550,000 sq. m of new and modernised capacity to the school estate. This is a record level of investment in school buildings and is testament to the priority the Government has and is placing on educational investment. It will expand the number of school places, significantly increase provision for special education, and upgrade and modernise school infrastructure. The impact of this will be felt in communities the length and breadth of the country. Following a site visit by the Department of Education, I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the accommodation brief for a significant extension at the school has been approved by the Department.”
“I thank Deputy Crowe very much for the question on Clonlara. I can confirm to him that the Department is in receipt of an application for funding for major capital works from the school in question. The application has been assessed under the Department's additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme. For background, since 2020, the Department has invested more than €5.7 billion in schools throughout the country, involving the completion of more than 1,150 school building projects, with construction currently under way on approximately 300 other projects, which includes 40 new school buildings, some of which are being delivered in phases. The 300 projects currently at construction involve a total State investment of more than €1.3 billion.”
“It is vitally important that all schools, including rural schools, are protected. Many smaller rural schools provide fantastic facilities. Where children who have additional needs go to rural schools, the school community is smaller. Those schools work extremely well. I take the point that these schools support everybody. As the population grows, it is important that rural schools and urban schools are all protected because they are all vital pieces of infrastructure. I would like to see the letter the Deputy has in this regard.”
“I come from a very rural community myself and I see the fantastic work that is being done right across the education sector in both rural and urban areas. Practitioners at school level, teachers, SET teachers and special needs assistants, make an enormous contribution. The method of allocating SET hours is very carefully monitored and has been over many years, going back to the time of resource teachers. A model has been brought in that fairly and accurately reflects the needs within the school community. I reiterate that there is no proposed reduction in the SET hours for this school in the 2025-26 school year.”
“This data is sourced from within the education sector to ensure it is validated and accurate. For the 2025-26 school year, close to 15,000 special education teachers have been allocated to schools. Almost 86% of schools will see either an increase in their allocation of hours or retain their previous allocation. For the schools where there has been a reduction, this is driven by demographic change in the area and a reduction of enrolments in the school. The vast majority of these schools will see a reduction of five hours or less. Where schools believe they need additional SET teaching resources, they can apply to the NCSE for a review and, if they are needed, these will be provided in advance of the next school year.”
“I thank the Deputy for the question. My clear understanding is that there is no proposed reduction in special education teaching, SET, hours for the school referred to by the Deputy for the 2025-26 school year. This school has seen a reduction of over 2% in enrolments since the 2024-25 school year and its SET allocation remains at 22.5 hours for the 2025-26 school year. The special education teaching allocation model is a standardised allocation model that provides schools with additional teaching hours to support the teaching needs of students in mainstream classes. The allocation model uses a variety of statistical data to complete allocations. This includes enrolment data, educational needs profiles, which consist of literacy and numeracy data, and data on educational disadvantage.”
“Everything that is needed is being put in place. This includes school buildings and spare capacity in schools. If necessary, section 37A will be invoked to ensure we have places. The Department and the NCSE are extremely serious about making sure that this is done. They have been working very hard over recent weeks to bring that about and will continue to do so in the coming weeks. I understand that the NCSE has engaged with parents over recent days in respect of the protest. It will be engaging with all parents, families and communities to make sure that we look after the most vulnerable children who are looking for specialised places or specialised classes. We are working with might and main to ensure that happens in a timely fashion.”
“As we understand it, the plans we have in place and the placements we are working on with school patrons and schools right across the country will exceed the demand and there will be sufficient places. However, we will have to work with all families and school authorities to make sure they are in place in a timely manner. We have to be better at getting information through the AIM programme and the domiciliary care scheme. All of that information has to be available at an earlier date. One of the challenges we face is ensuring that places are made available to families and children with additional needs in a timely manner. We have to push back on that date. We have had serious engagement with the Department and the NCSE over recent weeks to make sure that is done in a timely fashion because families need to know.”
“Parents of children with special educational needs seeking a specialised placement are now required to engage with the NCSE, so that all children who require a place for September can be supported to secure one in a timely manner. It is hugely important that we make sure those places are available in a timely manner.”
“On top of this, there will be well more than 1,000 places available through the normal annual movement of students progressing and graduating out of schools. There also remain special classes with vacant places in some areas of the country. Supporting the increase in provision are an additional 768 special education teachers and 1,600 special needs assistants. This means we will have more than 44,000 professionals in our education system dedicated to supporting children with special educational needs. A range of new measures to support the forward planning of special education provision was set out in Circular 0080/2024. These include new measures to address a challenge raised by the NCSE with regard to not knowing about some of the children seeking specialised placement in recent years.”
“I thank the Deputy for the question, and I look forward to working with everybody in this role for the betterment of all because there are, as always, huge challenges in education, which is the bedrock of our society. The Government is fully committed to children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver this objective. Up to an additional 2,700 specialist places, made up of 400 new special classes for an average of six children each and 300 special school places, will be provided for the coming year. The NCSE has already sanctioned in excess of 209 new school classes and is engaging intensively with schools and school patron bodies to confirm additional special classes as soon as possible.”
“I cannot stress enough that this has to be communicated to parents, families and children in a timely fashion because heretofore it was not. We had some instances where the children did not know where they were going when they finished primary school. They did not know in the last week in June where they would be in the first week of September. That practice is no longer acceptable. We will work might and main to ensure we iron out those difficulties.”
“They are in place and on the ground since 1 September. As I said at the outset, they are working through 1,000 school visits. We have to bring that together over the next number of weeks because we have to give certainty to parents. Parents are stressed and are extremely concerned, not just about the transition but also about where they are going to have places. It is totally and absolutely wrong that children are travelling long distances to school. These are children with additional needs and they are expected to travel for over an hour in some instances. That practice cannot continue. We must make sure that we have school places in the communities at primary and secondary levels. We must ensure that all children, especially those with additional needs, are accommodated within their communities insofar as possible.”
“There is funding available in the current year for additional classes. In his earlier contribution Deputy Quaide mentioned Waterford and Dungarvan, and it would be remiss of me not to refer to that. We have had a number of meetings in relation to the issues there as well. Most recently we met with the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and with officials to try and make sure there is a focus on that and so that we understand the challenges there. I understand the challenges first hand in relation to these issues. The Government is committed to ensure there are places available. Our duty is to make sure those places are available in a timely fashion. I will be working with the NCSE, and with the Department of Education officials to make sure they are available in a timely fashion. There are more SENOs this year than ever.”
“I have met the SENOs, the NCSE and the Department of Education officials on numerous occasion in recent weeks to impress on them the importance of making sure people find out where their children are going to school in a timely fashion, particularly in terms of the transition from primary to post-primary school, where there is a particular difficulty nationally. However, we are working to ensure that the advice and information is given to parents in a timely fashion to avoid as much stress as possible, as there is no doubt that families are under enormous stress over these issues.”
“These meetings will be key to determining which schools will open new special classes in the 2025-26 school year. The Deputy referred in particular to Youghal and the issues there. He is correct that Deputy O'Connor raised the matter with me a number of times. We have had a number of discussions on it. I look forward to visiting the schools and engaging because it is a priority for me to ensure that places are available in a timely fashion at both primary level and post-primary level. There is a great deal of work going on and there is an awful lot of need out there.”
“More than 400 new special classes were sanctioned for the present school year, with classes provided in every county. Of these, 66 were sanctioned in County Cork. This brings the total number of special classes in County Cork to 563, comprising 395 at primary level and 168 at post-primary level, providing places for approximately 3,400 students. An additional 22 classes have already been sanctioned for the 2025-26 school year and more will be sanctioned in the coming weeks. The vast majority of these classes are autism classes and have a teacher-student ratio of 1:6. Some 120 SENOs now operate nationwide, 18 of them operating solely in County Cork. The NCSE has completed more than 1,000 school planning visits nationwide in recent months.”
“The spend on special education is at an all-time high, with more than a quarter of the education budget allocated to special education, providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. Since 2020, almost 1,700 new special classes have been provided, bringing the total to more than 3,300. Over the same period, 11 new special schools have been opened. Four of these new special schools opened last year and five more will be established for the 2025-26 school year. Of these 16 new special schools, four are located in County Cork. In 2023, a new special school was established in east Cork in Carrigtwohill. This special school will grow and expand over time. I am absolutely sure of that. By the end of this year, there will be 17 special schools in the country educating more than 1,000 students.”
“I congratulate the Leas-Cheann Comhairle on his elevation to the position and wish him the very best of luck. It has been a long time since we shared an office in the engineering block many years ago. We have both served long apprenticeships in this building. I thank Deputy Quaide for raising the issue. I stress that enabling students with special educational needs to receive an appropriate education is a priority for me and the Government. It is the Government’s priority to ensure that all children have an appropriate school placement and that the necessary supports are provided to our schools to allow children with special educational needs to flourish and prosper.”
“We have to look at streamlining that and making sure that funding is put in place and that there are residential places for families, not just on the respite side but also for the many parents who are into their 70s and 80s and who are caring for adult children. Those people do not know what the future holds. We meet them every day of the week. The State needs to accept this. The new unit that is being set up in the Department of the Taoiseach will be judged on the basis of delivery. It will be judged on how we make the lives of people with disabilities and those of their families and their communities better. We have to work might and main in this regard. This is one of the issues I intend to take this on full belt. I know the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, and other Ministers will be working as hard as that on it as well.”
“That is one of the things I will look at in order to try to make sure that we respect both families and children who need additional help in school and that we intervene in a timely fashion. The latter is not happening at present. We all know the challenges every parent faces, and those challenges exist right through their lives as well. More than 20 years ago, the service providers were very good. They embraced the voluntary housing bodies and they built houses by using funds that were provided by the relevant Departments. We have, however, tied that up in red tape in relation to HIQA and everything else.”
“These last right through to primary school and secondary school. Since I took up this role, I have brought as much energy as I possibly can to it. I certainly have an understanding of the challenges that are faced by families on a daily basis. We have been working with the Department officials and the NCSE to ensure there are places available for children starting this year and into second level as well. We will work might and main to try to ensure we deliver that in a timely fashion. Families need certainty. They also need understanding when it comes to the places that are available for their children. They do not need it April, May and June of the school year; they need it prior to Christmas.”
“It is hugely important we break down all the barriers and that the information that is gathered at a very early age in terms of the access and inclusion model, AIM, or the domiciliary care programme is shared across the system in order that we know the challenges that exist. As other Deputies stated, we need to meet the challenges that exist every day of the week. By means of lived experience, I have seen the major challenges families are facing right across the spectrum. A number of agencies were set up - voluntarily, as was said - 50 to 60 years ago. They tried to provide a service, as they set out, from the cradle to the grave. That is what the State needs to do, namely provide a full service right across the system. There are challenges at the very early stages of a child's life.”
“I am delighted to contribute to this debate. In recent years, I gained huge experience as Chair of the disability committee. That committee worked extremely well on a cross-party basis in the previous Dáil to ensure that the voices of disabled citizens, their families and their communities would be heard. I understand that another iteration of this committee will be set up for this Dáil, which is extremely important. From the evidence that was given to that committee over a four-and-a-half year period, it is quite clear that Departments and Government agencies are working in silos. A unit has been set up in the Department of the Taoiseach to try to bring uniformity and a sense of purpose to Government in order to ensure that disability services are worked through.”