Richard Bruton
Question:277 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason home tuition was withdrawn from persons (details supplied) in County Dublin who suffer from cystic fibrosis. [12075/99]
Written Answers. - Special Educational Needs.
Home tuition is provided in situations where a child is unable to attend school for lengthy periods due to illness or other factors. The level of service provided is based on the duration of the child's absence from school and my Department's inspectorate's assessment of the needs of the child. Home tuition is provided in response to specific applications for the service. It normally operates only for the duration of the school year in which it is introduced.
In the case of the children to which the Deputy refers, home tuition was sanctioned for one child until December 1996 and for the other child until the end of the 1996-97 school year. I understand that the decision to withdraw the service from one of the children in December 1996 was based on the fact that the child's attendance at school had increased to a satisfactory level. My Department has not received an application for home tuition in respect of either child since the 1996-97 school year. However, it remains open to the parents of these children to apply for a renewal of a home tuition service.
I have arranged for an application form for the home tuition service to be sent to the children's parents and I can assure the Deputy that any application received will be treated on an urgent and sympathetic basis.