Local TD Denis Naughten has welcomed confirmation that a 4 acre site has now been secured from the HSE for a new building for St. Teresa’s Special School in  Ballinasloe.

“This is a very positive development in the ongoing saga of securing a site, but the news will be apprehensively received by the pupils, parents and staff of St. Teresa’s, as it is now imperative that the detailed planning and design proceeds without delay,” explained Denis Naughten.

Denis Naughten added: “The school is currently accommodated in the Ballinasloe Enterprise Centre in Creagh and it is now hoped that this project can be fast tracked so that we can move to the construction of a new purpose-built building as soon as possible.”

Deputy Naughten has been consistently pressing the current Minister and her two predecessors to secure a site for the new special school in Ballinasloe for the more than 20 students and 15 staff of St. Teresa’s Special School.

“The new school project for St. Teresa’s Special School was included in the Department’s six year capital programme announced in November 2015 to proceed to the tender and construction stages in the period 2019-2021, but because previous negotiations on a site fell through, we are still waiting to progress this project through the school building programme,” said Denis Naughten.

“We now need a clear commitment of funding for this project. For far too long children with special needs have had to travel great distances to access education. We now have a facility on our doorstep, and we need a commitment that the money will be put in place to allow for the construction of a purpose-built school for the children of Ballinasloe, East Galway and South Roscommon.”