I would like to raise with the Minister the issue of St. Killian's Special School and Carrigaline Community Special School in Cork. I have no doubt that the Minister, Deputy Coveney, is familiar with the situation in Carrigaline Community Special School in particular. To be fair, the Minister and other senior Ministers in the constituency have made numerous representations on behalf of the student population there. Two years after the opening of that school, I am flabbergasted that there is still no CDNT team in place there. There is not one in St. Killian’s Special School either, and the school was significantly extended. How do we arrive at a point where neither of those schools has access to CDNT teams? Two years on, why do we continue to accept it?

I am very familiar with the issues with Carrigaline Community Special School. We have spoken to the Minister of State about that, and she has been hugely helpful in trying to get solutions to effectively involve new structures. We recognise the frustrations, as well as the inability to get appropriate special staffing levels for certain necessary therapies and interventions.

We will continue to work with the Minister to try to get an outcome as soon as we can. I meet parents who are very frustrated by the pace at which this is being delivered but I think the Minister of State is doing everything she possibly can to move it forward in a difficult situation.