LAST UPDATE | 21 Aug

MINISTER FOR EDUCATION Norma Foley has said that it is her “absolute ambition” to have an education system where children with additional needs can have their educational requirements met by the schools closest to them. 

Foley was responding to a question about the lack of school places this year for children with additional needs.

In one instance, a 13-year old boy in Finglas who is autistic and non-verbal remains without a secondary school place this year after being turned away by 16 schools.

Conor Reddy, a People Before Profit councillor in Finglas-Ballymun told The Journal that in his constituency alone there are at least 10 children with additional needs who do not yet have school places for this year.

Minister Foley said today that Ireland has made “huge progress” in this area but that she knows there are still “individual cases where there are issues”.

She said more special education schools and classes are needed but noted that 3,300 special classes are currently operating across the country serving more than 19,000 students.

“We are working with schools to encourage schools in terms of opening up new and additional special classes. We’ve seen a whole number of them come on board this year and over the previous years, and we will continue to work with schools in that respect. We need more,” Foley said. 

She added that all new school buildings will automatically have special education classes based within them. 

“I want to congratulate and express my gratitude to the schools who are stepping up, and more and more are stepping up, and we need more and more of them, but we will leave no stone unturned to ensure that every child that requires a school place in a special class will actually get it,” Foley said.

The minister added that she knows some parents are forced to travel further than they would like with their children for special education places in school and said: “it is my absolute ambition that, over time – and we’re making progress in that respect – that they will have an opportunity to go to their nearest chosen school.”