I thank the Minister of State for being here to take this Commencement matter. I acknowledge his commitment and compassion in relation to special education. The Minister of State visited the school across the road from the one I am going to speak about a number of months ago when we went to the Patrician Primary School in Newbridge. He will recall it is an old building. It needs a special ASD class. The physical element of the school is not leading to that at the moment but we are working together to provide same. The school right across the road, the Patrician Secondary School, is an excellent school with a really strong reputation in the Newbridge community for inclusion and supporting a diverse student population, which we would like to see around the country. Having had the opportunity to visit the school many times and the applied leaving certificate class, which has been in situ for a long time, I can attest to that.

This school has had an allocation of 6.75 SNAs since the school population was 820. The school population is now 930 and growing. In fact, the school will have a large extension to cater for 1,000 pupils. One can imagine the impact on the school community when it heard just over the weekend that its allocation of 6.75 SNAs was going to be reduced to four next September.

The whole school community is absolutely devastated. The SNAs are a really important feature of school life in terms of students who are vulnerable and need to have those extra needs met. In the last budget, 16,000 SNAs were accounted for in terms of extra funding. For 2026, there was an increased allocation of, I believe, 1,717. That is more than double the number of SNAs ten years ago. That is really great and a lot of the extra allocation is down to the Minister of State and his support for this area. I appreciate that it is not him who makes these allocations but, rather, the NCSE, working through the special educational needs organisers, SENOs. However, considering the increase in SNA allocation, I cannot at any level understand how this school, which has grown, has received a proposed allocation of 40% instead of more SNAs. The school is making an appeal. Just the mere suggestion of the cut is inconceivable and indefensible and I hope that the Minister of State will support this call to have the cut reversed and, at the very minimum, retain the current number in the school. That is needed for those children who have those extra needs and are vulnerable.

Before I call the Minister of State to respond, I welcome the second half of the guests of Senator Michael Kennelly from Presentation Secondary School, Listowel, County Kerry, including their teachers. The Senator certainly has a following. He has a lot of people here today. I hope they all enjoy their day. This is the Commencement matter debate of Seanad Éireann, which takes place every day. Topics are raised by different Senators. It just so happens that these two are about education, so they are particularly interesting for students.

I apologise to the Minister of State for cutting across his response.

I welcome the pupils and teachers from Listowel. I am from a few miles across the border on the important Cork side. The River Feale divides us.

They might go over and live on your side.

Yes. They are very welcome to Leinster House.

I thank Senator Fiona O'Loughlin for her engagement on the Patrician Catholic Secondary School in Newbridge, County Kildare. I also thank the Senator for the amount of work she does and has done on education. She used to chair the Oireachtas committee on education and had a huge input into it. Indeed, on many committees I have chaired, she has a huge input into special education. That was important.

To speak to the issue of SNAs specifically, we have almost 25,000 SNAs within the education system at the moment. That number has grown hugely over the last number of years. That is to try to meet the demand within the school communities. Investment in SNAs and special education more widely is obviously a huge priority for me in the role that I hold - not just now, but right throughout. The SNAs do amazing work. They are a great addition to the school community and they also bring an expertise that is second to none.

We have had a review right across the system. It is the first time we have had a review in terms of SNAs in some time. We also have the redeployment scheme, which is coming in on the same basis as it has for teachers. For one reason or another, the care needs in a school may have changed, so they will be moved from one school to another. There is a redeployment scheme starting on 1 September this year. This is something that, this time last year when I took over the role, I worked on to try to get it in place. It is important that we respect the SNAs and the work they do. That is an integral part of it. We must also make sure they have pathways into the future.

The Senator raised the issue of this school. I do not want to get into the specifics of the school today because that is ultimately a role for the National Council for Special Education. We in the Department have given that role to the NCSE. I work very closely with it. We have weekly meetings, updating me on the challenges within this area. However, I take the points the Senator has made about the school. She mentioned at the outset of her contribution that the student population had gone from 820 to 930. That is a huge increase. A school that is heading for somewhere in the region of 1,000 pupils is an important educational structure, and it is important that we understand it and support it.

The point is that we have many SNAs in the system and we have to make sure that they are where the greatest need is. We have to look at that. This review is ongoing. Of course, there is an appeal process in place. I stress that the school authorities should put in that appeal and put the strongest possible case forward. I do not need to tell the school authorities that because that is what they are extremely good at, but it is important that they articulate the challenges they have, the care needs within the school and, of course, the growth in population because all of that is information that will be looked at in an appeal. The appeal process is open. Right across the system, we have some schools that are losing SNAs and some that are gaining SNAs. I encourage everybody to put in an appeal and I assure the House that they will be dealt with fairly. I encourage this school to put the best case forward in the appeal.

I acknowledge that the NCSE allocation and review process are important to ensure SNAs are provided where they are most needed. I also acknowledge that the number of SNAs in County Kildare has increased to 989 this year. That is significant, along with the 74% increase in the number of special classes in Kildare from 2021 to today. That is all really important. However, it does not take away from the cut that the Patrician Catholic Secondary School has been told to expect. I know that the Minister of State's vision, along with mine, is to deliver an education system that is of the highest quality where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported to reach their full potential. Unfortunately, the children, family and school community do not feel valued in the Patrician Catholic Secondary School in Newbridge.

I appreciate the Minister of State's interest in this matter. I hope that I can work with him and the Department in whatever way I can to help restore these positions. The school will be making that appeal to the NCSE.

Yes, the vision is very clear. It is about the best outcomes for the students. We must keep that in mind. We have additional SNAs put into the system. We got additional SNAs in this year's budget and that number has continued to grow over the last number of years. We have 25,000 SNAs in the system. The review looked at all the information we had to try to make the best possible decisions for the students and the best possible decisions to maximise the care where there is a need within school communities. For a variety of reasons, it is important that the school appeal the decision and put its best foot forward in that regard.

Senator O'Loughlin and I have worked together very carefully over many years since she came into the Oireachtas and even before that. She has a fantastic grasp and understanding of education. We will certainly work together to try to get the best possible outcomes. She will appreciate that I cannot give any cast iron guarantees. There is a process there that needs to be done. We will work on that process. I have no difficulty working with Senator O'Loughlin on this or any other issue.

I thank the Minister of State for his time here this morning on Commencement matters. It is greatly appreciated by the Seanad. I thank Senator O'Loughlin.