Ms Martina Mannion:

As the Senator knows, we are focusing strategically on increasing capacity across our special schools. We have seven special schools in Galway catering for more than 300 students. We are trying to ensure we do not just increase capacity but also that we do so strategically throughout the county so that children do not have to travel long distances. We are conscious children are travelling long distances at the moment to attend special schools. We have a particular focus on this issue. A review of the school transport scheme is under way. More than €338 million has been spent on the scheme, with a significant percentage of that spent on transport for children with special educational needs. The scheme is a combination of transport directly to schools and grant payments to parents if, for whatever reason, children are not able to access bus transport or need more bespoke arrangements. Many of the children attending special schools require bespoke arrangements. We are conscious of these issues and ensuring we have capacity.