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Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 7 Feb 2002

Vol. 548 No. 1

Written Answers. - Psychological Service.

Emmet Stagg

Question:

133 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science if, further to Parliamentary Question No. 386 of 11 December 2001, he will indicate the reason 11 schoolchildren from the Presentation Convent girl's national school, May nooth, County Kildare, are on a waiting list for the scheme for commissioning psychological assessments; the reason for this; if he will sanction the provision of funding to enable the assessments to proceed without further delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3963/02]

As this primary school does not yet have access to the full service provided by the National Educational Psychological Service Agency, NEPS, it is entitled to avail of the scheme for commissioning psychological assessments. I announced funding for this initiative last June. It allows schools which do not yet have access to the NEPS service to commission psychological assessments from private practitioners. The number of assessments per school is determined by the number of pupils, to a maximum of two per 100 pupils enrolled.

This school has a population of almost 500 pupils, and is entitled to commission ten assessments under the scheme. The school has arranged two psychological assessments so far and it is entitled to commission eight more. It is a matter for the principal of the school to approach a psychologist to carry out the assessments. If there is a difficulty about waiting times, the principal may approach any psychologist on the NEPS panel. There are approximately 90 psychologists on the panel and their names are available from my Department's website.

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