Further information over five new special schools

Further detail has been provided as to the location of five new special schools which are due to open in September 2025.

The schools, announced in October, are being established to address growing demand for school places for children with additional needs.

One of the two new schools planned for Dublin will be in the Lucan area while the second will be located in an as yet unspecified location in north Dublin.

The new special school in Cork will be located in the north of the city. The school in Co Monaghan will be in Castleblaney and the Tipperary school will be in Nenagh.

The schools will cater for children and young people with complex special education needs up to 18 years of age.

In a statement the Department of Education said the update would allow for the planning of school admissions, recruitment of staff, staff training, and for necessary building works to be carried out.

The schools will be located in existing school buildings that will be repurposed. The department said this was key to the accelerated delivery of the five new schools by next September.

It is expected that the five special schools will operate under the patronage of local Education and Training Boards (ETBs).

The department said planning for the opening of the new special schools was under way.

It said details in relation to the precise location of the new special schools, the admission process and the number of places to be offered for 2025/26 school year in each new special school would be confirmed shortly.

Minister for Education Norma Foley said she knew there was “a strong demand in Monaghan in particular for the county’s first special school”.

“I have met with parents and groups in Monaghan on a number of occasions and given them a commitment that this would be resolved before the end of the year.

“I am delighted that the location for the new special school in the county has now been confirmed,” she said.