Schools Building Projects
Seanad Éireann — 2026-01-27
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Hildegarde Naughton (FG), Galway West

I thank Senator Gallagher for raising this issue. It gives me an opportunity to outline to the House the Department of Education and Youth's plans to address the accommodation needs for Monaghan Community Special School. The Senator is correct: I had a fantastic visit to the school, one of five new special schools established for the 2025-26 school year. My Department's priority and my own was to open that school as quickly as possible to help to support those 18 children who urgently needed an education support place within our schools. As the Senator knows, the school operates under the patronage of Cavan and Monaghan Education and Training Board. The school supports 18 children and young people aged between four and 18 years of age with a diagnosis of autism and complex needs or students with complex learning needs. Again, I commend the phenomenal staff up there. What I witnessed was best in class in relation to the supports, the care and the educational supports they are providing to children. There is an administrative principal, an administrative deputy principal, five class teachers and nine special needs assistants together with ten co-operation hours per week.
This new school is located in Castleblayney, in a former ETB school property that was repurposed to facilitate the opening of the new school. There was a great sense of urgency, as the Senator has outlined, in getting this school opened. That project was delivered under the Department's SEN reconfiguration and modular accommodation programme, which facilitated the school opening as quickly as possible. The school authority has been granted further capital funding for phase 2 of the project. That involves the provision of modular accommodation to provide six special education needs places, and supporting ancillary accommodation under the special education needs reconfiguration and modular accommodation programme.
During my visit last week with the Senator and Deputy David Maxwell, both of whom are very much championing the progress and support of the school, I could really see the commitment of the staff to the students under their care. I was very pleased to speak with the parents, who relayed to me the importance of this school and how life-changing it is not just for their children but for their families and their wider families. I absolutely understand the importance of this and of continuing to provide special classes and special places right across the country, including Monaghan.
As I have stated previously, my Department last year committed to opening Monaghan Community Special School as quickly as possible. I am engaging with officials about the provision of future special schools and special classes right across the country, including in Monaghan. This process will be informed by the number of students and young people seeking special school and special class provision, the availability of accommodation in existing schools across the country, and other matters such as acquisition of land if required. That process is ongoing.
As the Senator knows, the National Council for Special Education, which was present last week in Monaghan, is the statutory body responsible for the provision of special education and the allocation of supports for children with special educational needs. Over 2,700 new places were provided for the 2025-26 school year, meaning that there are now 3,741 special classes nationwide. In Monaghan, we have 60 special classes now in operation providing capacity for 360 students. That includes six new special classes for the 2025-26 school year, meaning that the number of classes in County Monaghan has almost doubled since 2020. I might leave it there because I think I am out of time for now.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-01-27/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:33+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-27