Almost 310 legal cases have been filed in the courts against the Department of Education since 2016 – an average of almost five per month.

Last year, there were 103 actions filed in the courts in which the Education Minister was a named party, significantly higher than the 40 cases filed during 2019.

The figures were released to Peadar Tóibín, the leader of Aontú and TD for Meath West, via a parliamentary question by Education Minister Norma Foley.

The increase was mainly attributed to cases taken in relation to the decision to cancel the 2020 Leaving Cert as those cases made up 67 of all those filed.

The pandemic’s impact on education was a great cause for concern for parents, especially for those with children with additional needs.

Mr Tóibín said: “I was not surprised to see such a high number of legal cases relating to Leaving Cert 2020, but I would love to know how much money the Government spent fighting students and parents.

“Students with disabilities and their families have been treated appallingly throughout the pandemic. Their schools were closed and they were sent home.

“Then their multidisciplinary therapists were, for the most part, redeployed as contract tracers and these students were left completely abandoned.”