Special Educational Needs

Wednesday, 28 April 2021

Questions (610)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire

Question:

610. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Education the cost of running the school and home-based summer provision programme for children with special educational needs in 2020. [22118/21]

View answer

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Education

A significantly expanded Summer Programme was provided in 2020 for children with complex needs as a discrete response to Covid-19. The programme included a number of strands and options from which parents could choose, involving either in-school, or home-based supports by teachers and special needs assistants (SNAs) to help to prevent regression among children with SEN.

The programmes aim was to support children to reintegrate / transition into their planned education setting for the 2020/21 school year with their peers.

Over 14,000 children participated in the 2020 special education summer programmes developed by the Department including 3,881 in the school based programme, 9,716 in the home based programme and 450 families in the HSE programme.

The school based programme cost €6.5m, the home based programme cost 12.3m giving a total cost of €18.8m.