Minister visits Leitrim schools and pledges to ‘do his best’ on DEIS inequality

Minister of State for Special Education and Inclusion, Micheál Moynihan TD, visited Carrigallen Vocational School and Scoil Mhuire Primary School on Friday, 14 November, where he heard directly from staff about the significant pressure facing both schools due to lack of space, rapid enrolment growth and the ongoing absence of DEIS status in County Leitrim.

At Carrigallen Vocational School, Minister Moynihan was welcomed by Acting Principal Veronica Edwards, staff, and students. Also present were Eamon Scanlon TD, Martin Kenny TD, Cllr Gary Prior, Cllr Paddy O’Rourke (Chairperson of the Board of Management), Cllr Róisín Kenny, Mary Madden (Director of Schools, MSLETB), Peter Egan (Director of Further Education and Training), Declan Conboy, and students.

Acting Principal Veronica Edwards told the Minister: “Carrigallen Vocational School has an exceptional track record in ensuring every student feels valued and supported, with inclusivity at the heart of our educational ethos.”

She outlined the level of need within the school: “Over 20% of our students require additional support. We provide ASD classes, moderate learning disability classes, learning support, and targeted English language support. Every child deserves the environment they need to thrive.”

However, she warned that key facilities remain incomplete: “We now have a state-of-the-art modular building, but the sensory rooms remain empty because the funding window closed before we had dedicated space. We urgently need retrospective grants so these rooms can finally serve the students they were built for.”

Accommodation pressures were also highlighted: “We are renting four off-site classrooms and a community hall for PE. Students are travelling half a kilometre for lessons, losing tuition time and access to specialist resources. This has a particularly negative impact on students with additional needs.”

Edwards noted the strain this places on the wider school environment: “We have over 330 students and our outdoor space has been drastically reduced. Staff facilities are also critically inadequate — 55 staff share a tiny staff room and two toilets. Teachers deserve basic dignity if they are to deliver high-quality education.”

On the lack of DEIS support, she added: “Leitrim is the only county in Ireland without a post-primary school awarded DEIS status. Four of our feeder primary schools are DEIS. Our community is being left behind.”

She concluded with an appeal: “We ask for any support you can give in exploring whether Carrigallen Vocational School can become the first DEIS post-primary school in Leitrim.”

The Minister toured both schools, meeting students in inclusive learning settings and hearing detailed briefings on the scale of need. Acknowledging the frustration, Minister Moynihan said that while he “has no magic wand”, he would “do his best” to push for fairness and ensure Leitrim’s concerns are heard at national level.

At Scoil Mhuire Primary School, Principal Alan Ó Ceallaigh presented a stark picture of capacity issues and unmet needs.

He told the Minister: “We can’t meet the current needs of our pupils within the facilities we have. We simply do not have the space required.”

He emphasised the urgency of adequate activity space: “We need a fair and equitable central activity space. At present, the 80 square metres proposed is nowhere near adequate for five special classes.”

He described the strain on pupils with additional needs: “Our special classes require proper movement breaks, sensory regulation space and room for integration — none of which we can currently provide.”

Ó Ceallaigh said the lack of space affects the whole school: “There is no space for school assemblies, no space for presentations, no space even to officially open the school when the project is completed.”

Wet weather creates further challenges: “On wet days our pupils with additional needs cannot go outside at all, yet we have no indoor space to safely de-escalate or regulate them.”

He described teaching PE under severe constraints: “PE is being taught in the courtyard — 28 children in a line doing hops in the rain — because we have nowhere else to go.”

Early intervention students are particularly affected: “Early intervention children are arriving dysregulated and we have nowhere to bring them for regulation. Five minutes of the wrong smell on a replacement bus can set them back an hour.”

Despite this, the school continues to meet local demand: “We have always done everything we can for the NCSE and our local families. What we need now is fairness and equality for our children.”

Ó Ceallaigh stressed that space is not the issue — design limits are: “We are not constrained by space — we have an entire field available. The only thing stopping us is the design limit being imposed.”

He noted the exceptional scale of provision in the community: “There are ten special classes between this school and the secondary school. I don’t think there is another rural community in Ireland doing what we are doing, without once being compelled.”

Needs continue to grow: “What worked five years ago does not work today. The needs are more complex, and our facilities have not kept pace.”

And he ended with a message about the future: “This is not for us — it’s for the children coming behind: the next generation who deserve parity with their peers elsewhere in Ireland.”

In a statement to media after the visit, Minister Moynihan said: “I’m here on a fact-finding mission. I have no intention of travelling around the country making wild promises, but I have heard loud and clear what is being said by the school principal, the board of management and the ETB. I see the extent of what they’re facing, and we will continue to work with the schools.”

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Photos Marie Conboy