Housing, led by my colleague the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy O'Brien, remains a key priority of the Government. The strategy Housing for All delivers on the programme for Government commitment to step up housing supply and put affordability at the heart of the housing system. A suite of measures, including cost-rental, affordable and social housing, is being provided for and significant progress has been made, but more needs to be done. That is acknowledged. More will be done. I appr…

I do not take away from the challenges the Deputy referred to. We have been cognisant of them. The Deputy will appreciate that in the recent budget we announced a €2,000 support bursary for the PME students who will compete in 2024. We also introduced 1,000 posts of responsibility, again to support teachers in their workplace. We provided for free upskilling courses in subjects that present a challenge. We have engaged with student teachers, more than 3,000 of whom have found routes to make themselves available to …

I assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post-primary levels, including those with special educational needs, is an absolute priority for the Department and, indeed, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton. As the Deputy will be aware, my Department's demographic projections utilise various data sources, such as current enrolment figures, child benefit records, census information, residential development data and migration patterns, among o…

There is a quite robust planning unit within the Department, specifically within the planning and building unit. It has a very comprehensive geographical information system, a system that relies on a variety of data, not just data on child benefit. It also relies on other information available, including CSO figures. There is very proactive engagement on the ground with local authorities, particularly those planning to have new housing developments come on stream. There is also direct engagement with school authori…

As previously outlined, there are 314 school planning areas, or just school areas, if you like. The planning and building unit would say that in less than ten of those school areas are there challenges and difficulties for people. I want to say clearly that I do not for one minute underestimate the stress and challenge that presents for parents who are intent on and need to get their children into school and have to go through the process. On duplication, I fully understand why a parent would apply to a number of d…

We are on a roll of congratulations, so I want to congratulate the Deputy on his recent marriage. I wish him well. Ensuring that every child's experience in school is positive and that they have qualified, engaged teachers available to support them in their learning is a key priority area of action for the Government. In budget 2024, a variety of commitments have been given, which includes an introduction, as I outlined previously, of a professional master of education incentive scheme for all newly qualified teach…

The PME.

I thank the Deputy. With regard to the PME, the €2,000 is a significant start and gesture.

I appreciate that we would all want it to be greater. It is a very good indication of what we had available to us that we would acknowledge the challenges that people face and that that bursary would be made available. On the support for special educational needs, 27% of the entire budget of the Department is spent on special education. That is as it should be. It is more than €2.7 billion. It is right and proper. We have more than 40,000 professionals working in that area. We have 3,000 special classes, two thirds…

On permanent contracts, there is a pathway forward. In fact, after two years, people are into permanent contracts, or what are called contracts of indefinite duration. There is a clear pathway. On costs, I appreciate the €2,000 for the professional master of education is a start. The additional courses like upskilling courses are across a wide variety of different subject areas and are also free of charge. There is no cost to any teacher who would like to step forward. In the context of career breaks, secondments o…

It is an absolute priority of the Department and of mine to ensure that every child in the State has access to a school place that is appropriate to their needs. We are continually investing in existing and new schools to ensure that this is the case. Testament to this is that almost 400 new classes for children with special education were established in the 2023-24 school year and school building projects completed in 2023 delivered more than 7,000 additional mainstream post-primary school places. Since 2020, the …

I thank Deputy Clarke. Specifically with regard to special education we have seen unprecedented development. I concede it was coming from a low base. We now have more than 3,000 special classes in the system, two thirds of which were delivered under the Government in the past four years. We also have seven new special schools delivered by the Government and four additional special schools will open in September. An incredible emphasis is being placed on special education. My colleague the Minister of State, Deputy …

I want to be 100% clear. We are completely dedicated to ensuring that all children with additional needs will have the places that best meet their needs. It is my absolute vision that we will have a scenario in which children with additional needs can attend their nearest school. That is the objective. It is why 3,000 additional special educational classes are in place. As I have said previously, two thirds of them have been delivered by this Government. We will get to a point where a student attends their nearest …

Since 2020, the Department of Education has invested in the region of €4.5 billion to add capacity and develop and upgrade school facilities around the country for the almost 1 million students and, importantly, the 100,000 staff who learn and work in our schools. The minor works grant is one important element of a record level of capital investment in school infrastructure. The Department recognises the importance of the minor works grant to primary schools. This funding provides good flexibility at local level to…

In terms of the funding that has been made available to Carlow schools, from 2018 to 2023 schools in Carlow received in excess of €4.5 million under the minor works grant. The grant for the 2024-25 school year, which is, as I said, due to issue later this month, will provide more than €400,000 in additional funding to Carlow schools. On the point of funding being issued to schools, I also recently announced the ICT grant of €50 million to all primary, special and post-primary schools for the 2023-24 school year. In…

I thank the Deputy. In terms of the information that is being made available, the Department deals directly with the patron bodies on the ground, whoever they may be. To be fair, there are 4,000 schools in the system, so I think it is an appropriate mechanism. Of course, there is always a mechanism through which the Deputy can ask a parliamentary question in the Dáil, etc. I want to acknowledge that it is important to have a line of open contact with the schools. That is being done between the Department’s planning…

At the outset, I will say that I am very familiar with this particular school. The Minister, Deputy McConalogue, has raised this with me on a number of occasions, so I am very invested in bringing this over the line. I know that is the Deputy’s view also. The project that has been referenced by the Deputy is included in the Department’s construction programme, which will be delivered under the national development plan as part of Project Ireland 2040. The project for Scoil Íosagáin in Buncrana is a large-scale proj…

There is no lack of urgency here; I want that to be very clear. This project has moved at pace under the last four years of this Government. As I have said, under the next phase of the school building programme, individual school building projects will be authorised to proceed to construction, subject to an assessment of tender reports and relevant due diligence by the Department’s planning and building unit. The large-scale specific project for Scoil Íosagáin in Buncrana is currently at stage 3, which is tender st…

I thank the Deputy. I absolutely understand and appreciate the importance of the provision of a new build for a school. I recognise the importance of such provision in the interests of the school community, including the staff, students and the wider school community, comprising parents and the wider community. It is for that reason this project has moved, as I said. We received the required documentation in January. I made it clear that the project was being moved as a priority. I also said clearly, and I am happy…

In June 2023 - the Deputy is correct - I was very pleased to launch a €5 million pilot of counselling and well-being supports in primary schools in selected counties. This further supports the range of mental health and well-being supports already provided by my Department and the excellent work already happening in schools in respect of well-being. All of this supplements the mental health supports that are offered by the HSE throughout the country. The pilot has two strands. Strand 1 sees direct counselling suppo…