1514. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Education and Youth if a school (details supplied) was consulted prior to the withdrawal of funding for the special class classroom in its new school building; the assessment that was carried out of current and projected demand for special class places at the school; the number of children currently eligible for or awaiting special class provision at the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63697/26]

I can confirm to the Deputy, that my department is delivering a large-scale major project to provide the school in question with new permanent accommodation and this project is currently well advanced at construction with an expected completion date in the fourth quarter of 2026.

The new school building will accommodate two Gaelscoileanna that share the same patron in one combined structure. The new school structure will provide a combined total of 28 mainstream classrooms and 4 special classes. The two schools have a current staffing of 27 mainstream teachers which allows for the opening of 4 special classes while retaining 1 spare mainstream classroom.

In line with the government’s Infrastructure Guidelines, all school building projects are reviewed at each stage of the architectural design process. While provision was made in the design for four additional mainstream classes in addition to the original footprint, the decision taken was not to pursue this option based on the existing overcapacity of the current footprint and the need to prioritise expenditure for essential mainstream and special class places including in the wider Dublin west area. The appropriate school patron was consulted in November 2025 and the department’s strategic infrastructure section’s principal officer and colleagues met both the patron and the schools twice subsequently the first of which was on the 23rd January 2026 to explain the section's decision following the formal publication of the NDP Sectoral Investment Plan for the Education and Youth Sectors for the period 2026 to 2030 in January 2026. The Plan prioritises expenditure for essential additional school places including special classes the fundamental need to maximise the use of available capacity across the school estate.

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is the statutory body responsible for the provision of special education and allocating supports for students with special educational needs. The department is guided by the NCSE in relation to the requirement for special classes in the first instance.

In relation to the specific school referenced by the Deputy, the NCSE have confirmed that it has sanctioned a Special Class at the school for the 2026/2027 school year and the school have enrolled pupils for this class. I can assure the Deputy, that the NCSE will continue to monitor the requirements for special class places at the school in question and indeed the School Planning Area (SPA) as a whole. As with all SPAs the NCSE will engage with school authorities to ensure sufficient provision of special class places to meet the demands in each area.

My department will continue to keep the demographic projections in this area under close review and has already offered to engage with the schools further should school capacity require further increase to serve local needs.