T2. Ms Flynn asked the Minister of Education for an update on the consultation process about providing additional SEN places at the site of the old Suffolk Primary School in West Belfast. (AQT 442/22-27)

I am aware of the issue that the Member raises about additional capacity. I am happy to provide a written update. I do not have the exact details on where the position sits, but I am more than happy to engage with the Member and to provide more information.

I thank the Minister for that response. Has he any sense of the numbers? If the consultation is successful — the hope is that we will get additional provision; the school is in West Belfast but will take in kids from across the area — how many places might this piece of land provide?

I do not have the precise details. What I will say to the Member is that, where a consultation process is carried out and where we are able to provide support and it comes to me for a decision, I will not be found wanting in trying to expedite that as soon as possible. We recognise that there is a need to provide additional capacity across Northern Ireland, but there is a higher need in some areas than in others. Where I can support meeting that need, I will not be found wanting in providing the support that is necessary. However, I will happily provide more details to the Member in a more precise update.