Donnelly slams government over drop in early intervention classes

Children with additional needs are losing vital early support as the number of early intervention classes in Dublin has dropped sharply, a decline Sinn Féin TD Paul Donnelly says is leaving families desperate and forgotten.

The Dublin West representative was responding to new Department of Education figures released to his party colleague Pa Daly TD, which show that the number of early intervention classes has stagnated or even fallen in most parts of the country.

In Dublin, the number of early intervention classes has fallen from 24 in the 2023/2024 school year to just 19 in 2025/2026.

Nationally, 18 counties have seen either no increase or an outright decline in provision, while Sligo has none at all.

Deputy Donnelly said the figures highlight the government’s lack of urgency in addressing the needs of children who require early developmental support.

“It is extremely concerning that there has been no significant progress made by this government to establish additional early intervention classes despite the clear demand for them,” he said.

“Early intervention classes are vital for many children with additional needs.

£These classes allow children to receive targeted support before they begin primary school to improve their developmental, social and academic outcomes.”

He said the figures “reinforce this government’s blatant failure to address the lack of early intervention classes in each county”, adding that even where numbers have risen, the increases have been “minuscule”.

“In no instance would the slight increase we have seen be enough to satisfy the demand,” he said. “The Programme for Government outlines the commitment to providing early intervention services for children in a timely manner.

The proof is in the pudding. The statistics show that many children are not getting this support in time or at all.”

Describing the situation as “short-sighted and deeply damaging”, the Dublin West TD said that ignoring the evidence in favour of early support will “only exacerbate what is already a serious crisis in special education”.

“This requires urgent action,” he said.

“I urge Minister McEntee to provide adequate funding and resources to expand the number of early intervention classes to meet demand across the state.”