To ask the Minister of Education to detail the actions he is taking to increase the provision of special needs education facilities, including the number and capacity of special schools, for nursery age pupils and upwards, with special educational needs, in (i) Northern Ireland; and (ii) East Londonderry.

The Education Authority has commenced a body of work to identify and anticipate the need for additional school places for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) across Northern Ireland in both Special School and mainstream settings. EA senior staff meet regularly with senior Departmental officials to provide updates on progress.

The EA is currently consulting on two draft Area Planning frameworks, one for Special Schools and one for Specialist Provision at Mainstream Schools, including the proposal to move towards a consistent model of provision from 3 – 19 years across the Special School estate. The public consultations are open until 12 April 2021. Following the closure of the consultation and analysis of the responses, the EA will bring forward a strategic area plan for Special Schools and specialist provision in mainstream.