The Government is committed to the accelerated provision of additional special class and special school places next year by providing at least 3,000 new places in locations where it best meets existing and future demand. The provision of timely information is a key requirement to support the forward planning of new special education provision. The National Council for Special Education is the statutory body tasked with sanctioning new special education provision in our schools. The council is reviewing and assessing information provided through the parents' notification process, which closed on 1 October. I understand that the National Council for Special Education will commence sanctioning new special classes for 2026-27 this week, which is four months ahead of last year. The new timeline of 1 October was publicised widely and communicated to schools, special education advocacy groups and parent representative bodies. The council also undertook a lot of work at local level to ensure that families were aware of the timeline and the process. This earlier date in October coincides with when schools begin enrolment processes and so affords parents the opportunity to enrol in existing classes. Many mainstream schools, particularly at post-primary level, commence admissions processes for the following school year on 1 October annually. The council advises that the majority of children and young people coming through the parents notify process and seeking a special class or a special school place for the 2026-27 school year are already enrolled in school and are being supported by existing special education teachers and special needs assistants. As with other applications for support, it is important that those who come forward after the closing date are assured that they are not forgotten or excluded from the system. I stress that the council will continue to support all children made known to it after 1 October in their existing placement with appropriate supports. At the same time, it is critical that the council has as much local information as possible as early as possible to effectively plan new provision.

Sentiment score: 0.48

On the deadline, there was a huge amount of concern, particularly over recent years, that we were not planning properly for special classes and special schools in an early and a timely fashion. We brought forward the 1 October deadline and announced that earlier this year to bring greater clarity and certainty because families last year, particularly in the March-April period, were fierce frustrated not knowing what the future held in education terms for their children. We brought forward the 1 October deadline. The deadline was put in place to ensure we knew what the demand was for 1 September 2026. Those figures are being gone through meticulously to make sure that the classes are opened where the demand is and that we understand where the demand is. A lot of that work is ongoing. We hope to announce a number of the classes this week, but there is a huge amount of work still going through where the numbers are. The engagement between the council and the families is ongoing. I might come back on a few of the other issues the Deputy raised.

Sentiment score: 0.29

For the assessment of need and because of the challenges we face, there is no doubt but that we need to move away from the model we have. We need to get therapists to children faster and not be tied up in too much bureaucracy. There has been a huge push to have assessments of need. Right now, you do not need an assessment of need to access education. A lot of work has been done, and I know that officials are meeting education partners today to bring clarity on the very question asked by the Deputy. We will certainly bring extreme clarity. If this system is to work within education, all our education partners must have bought in, including the teacher unions and people right across the education spectrum. Every one of those people plays a significant role in special education. I assure the Deputy that intense work is ongoing at the moment to ensure we bring absolute clarity to the roles involved in decision-making, and that decisions are guided by the best possible outcomes for children. Those will be finalised. We will update the House when those issues are agreed between the various education partners.

Sentiment score: 0.26

The bus has just come.

Sentiment score: 0.00

I thank the Deputy for his kind comments, although I noted a "but" towards the end of them. In recent months, while I have been in this role, I have seen right across the Chamber the commitment to education of all the spokespersons and Members of the House. The Deputy did a huge amount of work in relation to the Rahan school bus. That is what all of us should be doing because the future of our people rests on education and how to get it. We were delighted to work with the Deputy on that matter. School secretaries and caretakers are at the heart of the school and are the key interface between students, parents, school leaders and other members of teams within schools. They play a pivotal role and should be treated with the same respect as is afforded to all other members of a school's staff. Without them, our schools would be unsustainable. In supporting these vital school staff members, we also support the school community as a whole. The Department is committed to ensuring that school caretakers will be afforded the opportunity to avail of a similar package which was offered to school secretaries on foot of an agreement reached in the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, in 2022. My Department has been engaging with Fórsa over the past number of weeks under the auspices of the WRC and with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation in relation to a number of claims, including a claim for a comparable pension entitlement. The matter has now been referred to the Labour Court and a hearing will take place on 12 January 2026. The parties remain in process and my Department remains committed and ready to engage with Fórsa to reach a resolution on this important matter. The Deputy will understand that as with any industrial relations process where engagement is sensitive and complex, the matters under discussion are confidential until this process concludes.

Sentiment score: 0.43

To be absolutely fair, a Labour Court hearing will take place on 12 January 2026 and it would be against all procedures for me to come in here and undermine negotiations that are ongoing and the detailed work that is going on. As I said at the outset, I understand the position of the caretakers and secretaries, and I understand the Deputy's person involvement in the issue. I compliment his grandmother and others who have kept education running in many communities. When you walk into a school, the school secretary is the person who knows the heartbeat of the school. There is engagement between the Department, Fórsa and the Department of public expenditure, as would be the case for any such issue. The matter is before the Labour Court on 12 January, and it is important that we allow the process to continue. The Department very much values caretakers and secretaries across the school system.

Sentiment score: 0.27

We in the Department, across the Government and across the House support secretaries and caretakers. Earlier this year when they went as far as industrial action, many people stood with them because they understood and accepted the importance of caretakers and secretaries to school communities. It is important that we give that voice across the House, whether those speaking are in government or in opposition. We must give a voice to the issue because it gives a clear indication to us and the Department of the strength of support that secretaries and caretakers have across the House. As I said, there is ongoing engagement with the Labour Court at the moment and there will be a hearing on 12 January. I assure the Deputy that we are committed to finding a meaningful resolution and ensuring that the roles of caretakers and secretaries within school communities are appreciated. We understand the importance of them.

Sentiment score: 0.53

The Government is committed to increasing funding to support schools and the programme for Government commits to increasing capitation funding to schools of all types to ensure they can meet day-to-day running costs. Schools have autonomy in their spending, allowing them to make decisions on spending independently at school level. The financial support services unit, FSSU, funded by the Department is an important source of advice and support to schools on financial matters, including budgeting and cash flow management. In circumstances where a school is in financial difficulty, the Department requests the FSSU to carry out an evaluation of the financial position in the school. The Department is committed to offering all available and appropriate supports to these schools, which may include an advance in capitation grant funding, or other measures, as may be appropriate. As a result of such evaluations, a small number of schools required an advance in capitation grant funding to be paid to address immediate cash flow issues. The Department continues to liaise with the FSSU regarding supports and guidance to all schools. In the 2023-24 school year, 31 schools were referred to the unit and two received an advance in capitation grant funding. In the 2024-25 school year, 61 schools were referred to the FSSU and 17 received an advance in capitation grant funding. In the 2025-26 school year to date, 18 schools were referred to the FSSU and nine received an advance in capitation grant funding. The Department has secured €39 million in budget 2026 towards increased capitation funding for primary, post-primary and special schools. This will result in the standard rates increasing from €224 to €274 for primary schools and from €386 to €406 for post-primary schools. The increases in the budget are in addition to the 12% increases as part of budget 2025. The last three budgets have resulted in an increase in the level of capitation grant rates of almost 50% paid to primary schools and approximately 28% paid to post-primary schools.

Sentiment score: 0.36

The next capitation grant payments due to primary and post-primary schools will be paid in January 2026. The Department is committing to offering all available and appropriate supports to schools experiencing financial difficulties and advises any such schools to engage early with the Department and FSSU. We increased them, and I think it is important that we put a long-term footing in place in relation to the capitation grants and that there is not just a once-off approach but a sensible way of making sure the capitation grant money meets the demands in schools. I can stress, though, that the Department is working extremely hard to engage with all school communities. Any school community that has difficulties should liaise as early as possible with the FSSU and the Department because we are there to help guide and resolve issues they may have at local level.

Sentiment score: 0.38

The capitation grant increases in several budgets in recent years have been there. This means there is a serious commitment to education right across the system. We have record funding in the Department to meet the needs of student communities and make sure they have the best possible outcomes. Investment in education continues. This is the case whether it is in special or mainstream education, and the Government is very much committed to it. We are not blind to the challenges at school gates or in school communities, and we have engaged very thoroughly with school communities that have faced financial challenges over the last number of years and again this year. The increase in the capitation grant gives a sense of where we are at with it. Huge funding is also being given right across the spectrum. I have to push back on the suggestion that we do not understand what is going on in education. We do understand it and we are investing in education.

Sentiment score: 0.37

Budget 2026 provides funding for 3,000 new special educational places within our education system for the 2026-27 school year. As the number of special classes and special schools continues to grow, there is also additional capacity created each year through the natural movement of children from primary to post-primary, leaving post-primary and with vacancies in individual classes. In order to ensure new special classes can open as quickly as possible, the National Council for Special Education and the Department of education are prioritising working with medium and large primary schools that do not already have a special class and have available accommodation or a building to accommodate a new special class, as well post-primary schools with no special class or just one. This approach maximises the use of existing space that can be established and made to conform quickly and efficiently, while also ensuring new provision continues to be established. It also increases the number of schools with special classes, providing parents with greater choice and reducing the distances some students are travelling to access a special class place. The Department and the NCSE have also had significant engagement with school patron bodies and school management bodies as part of the forward planning. The NCSE is undertaking analysis of the information provided through the parents notification process, which closed on 1 October, to plot the demand for special class places for 2026-27. The NCSE will also consider vacant places in existing special classes and places that will become available through the regular transition of students through the system. Once this analysis is completed, the NCSE will be equipped to engage with schools to open new special classes in relevant areas. The NCSE expects to start sanctioning new special classes for the 2026-27 school year this week. This is four months earlier than last year and will bring clarity to parents and schools as to where classes will be located. I will come back to some of the other points the Deputy made in my follow-up response.

Sentiment score: 0.52

We have developed an extremely convoluted system of getting appropriate school places for children. That system was developed over many years and it causes frustration for families, children and school communities. I will deal with the 1 October deadline first. The deadline was brought back from 1 February to 1 October to get a better handle on the system and to understand the level of need earlier in the school year. We will be sanctioning classes in the next couple of days, which is four months earlier than last year. That will be rolled out over quarter 1 of 2026, which will give greater certainty. In terms of the assessment of need, it is a key component. We have constantly said that parents do not have to have an assessment of need to access special education but we have to bring clarity to that. Departmental officials and the education partners are meeting today in relation to this and their work will be ongoing because we need to bring absolute clarity as to who is making the decisions. The NCSE will be critically involved in this. We need to clarify who is going to support the school communities because if we do not get this process correct, we will not get the goodwill and buy-in from education partners, which is the crucial piece. We need buy-in from parents, teachers and school communities and, most importantly, good outcomes for the children.

Sentiment score: 0.22

Families have been contacting the NCSE after 1 October, even though the portal is closed. They have contacted their local SENOs and the NCSE informing them that their children will need specialised places in September 2026, either in a special class in a special school or supported within a mainstream school. We will work with all of those families. We are going to continue to work with them and nobody will be forgotten within the system-----

Sentiment score: 0.14

Since 1 October, quite a number of families have contacted the NCSE-----

Sentiment score: 0.15

-----through their SENO or directly. They have made contact through the local SENO, which is hugely important. They have contacted us and we are looking at those figures. We have brought the deadline forward to 1 October this year. We have to have a deadline because if we do not have one into the future, and if we constantly break that deadline, it will not work. We need to be sure of the numbers earlier within the system so that we can properly plan and make decisions and families can know with certainty early in quarter 1 of the year.

Sentiment score: 0.13

I thank Deputy Boyd Barrett for the question. First of all, I want to welcome him back. It is great to see him and I wish him the very best of luck in everything. To say that I find the question in front of me and the challenges faced by survivors challenging would be an understatement. It is extremely distressing even to read or study some of the documentation in relation to this. I find it horrendous to hear the legacy that has been left and the damage that has been done to the man the Deputy calls Stephen, not just in his school years, but in his lifetime. The Government takes revelations of historical sexual abuse in schools with the utmost seriousness and has established a commission of investigation, chaired by Mr. Justice Michael MacGrath, to investigate the handling of complaints and allegations of historical sexual abuse in schools. The commission was the principal recommendation of the report of the scoping inquiry into historical sexual abuse in day and boarding schools run by religious orders. The scoping inquiry’s report also recognised the significance of the issue of redress for survivors and their expressed wish that those running schools where child sexual abuse occurred should be held financially accountable. It recommended that consideration be given by the Government to establishing a redress scheme for survivors. The high-level interdepartmental group established to advise the Government on the recommendations of the scoping inquiry recognised redress as an important element of accountability for survivors. The group recognises that consideration of a redress scheme may have far-reaching implications and has advised that further work needs to be undertaken to ensure that the Government is fully informed in any decision it may take. The interdepartmental group has commenced this work, is committed to meeting regularly and aims to report to the Department of education within 18 months. This will not impede the progress of the commission of investigation, which will begin its work in parallel. The commission does not have a role in relation to redress.

Sentiment score: 0.01

I take that point. I have met many families and survivors who have suffered enormous trauma such as the Deputy has outlined. Horrendous crimes were committed against them. People pass on and the family, the next generation, carry that challenge in respect of how their parents were treated in school. It is not just for the victims themselves but for the families. In many of the cases I have been involved with, the families have really been challenged. There is one commitment that I will give. The interdepartmental group has commenced its work. That work is ongoing. The group is meeting very regularly. The report is to be within the Department. There is a huge amount of work to be done. It has to be done meticulously and correctly. The group is committed to reporting within the 18 months. It is very important that the timeline is stuck to because, as the Deputy has said, many of the survivors are getting on in years. They really want some kind of closure - I mean that in the broadest possible sense because it may not be full closure - regarding the horrific crimes committed against them.

Sentiment score: -0.02

I will give the Deputy a commitment that we will work to make sure the timelines set out within the system are adhered to. A lot of work is ongoing across Government Departments in that regard. I appreciate that commitments are often given in relation to timelines but then, for a number of reasons, those timelines are not met. This cannot be missed. It has to be on time. Over the past 30 or 40 years, we have dealt with revelations and issues relating to abuse in our school system. We are still trying to come to terms with that. Cases are still coming forward, as we have recently seen in the courts. I will make sure the timelines we have set out are met for every individual who suffered within the school system. There is a lot of work to be done but the documentation I have been given says it will be done within 18 months. I will work to that timeline and report back to the House as soon as possible.

Sentiment score: 0.03