54. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she plans to establish an additional reading class west of Galway city to compliment the class in Renmore; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53301/26]

At present, there are four special schools, and fourteen special classes attached to mainstream schools to support students with a specific learning disability such as severe dyslexia. I want to acknowledge the excellent work they do. It is important to note they were established at a time when there were much fewer additional supports in schools.

In pursuit of a more inclusive education system, it is important, as far as possible to support students to attend their local mainstream schools. This means that children and young people can be educated with their peers and are not required to travel long distances to attend special schools or classes.

15,000 special education teachers have been provided to enable schools to achieve this objective. In practical terms this means schools get a substantial additional teaching allocation to support students with special education needs who are in mainstream classes.

The additional resources are intended to support students with the greatest level of need, including those with a specific learning disability such as dyslexia, dyscalculia or dysgraphia.

Of course, I recognise the importance of building the capacity of teachers in mainstream schools to meet the needs of all students. To support this, 338 places are funded each year for teachers to attend post-graduate special education needs programmes. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) offers dedicated professional learning opportunities for teachers supporting students with additional needs. The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) also provides professional learning opportunities that are available to all primary and post-primary school teachers on supporting children and young people with special educational needs.

Funding is also made available to schools for the purchase of specialised equipment to assist students. Schools can apply to the NCSE, through their local special educational needs organiser (SENO) for such support.

The need for any additional provision or resources for schools to support students with dyslexia is kept under constant review by the NCSE.

My department and the NCSE continue to work closely with school patron bodies, school management bodies and schools to confirm new special classes for the next school year 2026/2027. The NCSE began sanctioning new special classes in January of this year, which is several months earlier than last year.

In addition, I recently announced inclusive special classes as part of a new approach to supporting students with additional needs. This is one of many ways my department is actively engaging to meet the increased demand.

584 new special classes have been sanctioned to date, including 68 inclusive special classes. This brings the total number of special classes sanctioned to date to over 4,300. Of the 584 new special classes sanctioned, 378 are in primary and 206 are in post-primary level with 32 in County Galway including a new Development Language Disorder (DLD) special class in Renmore, Galway. Further new special classes may be confirmed in the coming weeks, if required.

My department and the NCSE are committed to ensuring that sufficient special education placements remain available for students with special educational needs and will continue to review and monitor the situation in County Galway and indeed nationwide as to where new special schools are required.