My Department does not keep a record of the number of educational needs questionnaires it issues at second level. Such question naires are not issued at primary level. Educational needs questionnaires are used to assist my Department in helping parents of children who are having difficulty securing a second level school placement. This may be as a result of expulsion, delay by the parents in seeking to enrol their child or no school place available for the child, perhaps because the local schools have reached their capacity or the school may require additional resources to meet the specific needs of the child. My Department is dealing with approximately 130 cases of parents having such difficulties at second level. Educational needs questionnaires are a very helpful tool in the identification of the child's educational needs and provide written parental permission to contact schools and the National Educational Psychological Service on behalf of their child. When a completed educational needs questionnaire is returned, my Department endeavours, through a process of consultation with the schools and through the inspectorate, to secure as soon as possible, a suitable school placement for the child. It must be noted that my Department has no authority to compel a school to admit a pupil.
The Education Act, 1998, provides that each school board of management must publish the policy of the school concerning admission to and participation in the school, including the policy of the school relating to the admission of students. The Act has also made provision for new appeal procedures to address grievances at school level, including expulsion and refusal of a school to enrol a student. These procedures will bring a greater transparency to decisions by schools in relation to expulsion and also promote fair procedures at school level. In particular, the right to appeal to a national appeals committee in relation to a decision by a school to expel will bring a better balance to the rights and obligations of all concerned.
Question No. 20 answered with Question No. 14.
