I am satisfied that the classroom assistant support provided to students with disabilities under FÁS schemes is very much valued by the schools involved and is of significant benefit to the students in question.
I can assure the Deputy that I would be anxious to ensure the maximum possible level of continuity in the delivery of child care assistance to student with disabilities. However, arrangements governing the operation of FÁS schemes, including those involving work as classroom assistants, are a matter for the authorities at FÁS which comes under the remit of my colleague the Minister for Enterprise and Employment.
I would point out that since my appointment as Minister for Education, my Department has allocated an additional 162 child care assistant posts. The total number of such posts now in place is 244. I consider that the substantial improvement which I have already achieved in this area provides practical confirmation of my commitment to the needs of the children in question.
My capacity to allocate child care assistant posts in any year is determined by resource availability in that year and the level of competing demand in other special needs areas.
