Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 12 May 2021
167. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Education further to Parliamentary Question No. 173 of 18 February 2021, her plans to carry out a review of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004; the timeline for the review; the person or body that will carry out the review; the terms of reference for the review; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25104/21]
View answerA number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004 have been commenced. The commenced provisions include those establishing the NCSE and those providing for an inclusive approach to the education of children with SEN.
The remaining sections of the Act have yet to be commenced. The Sections of the EPSEN Act which have not been implemented are those which would have conferred a statutory entitlement to –
- an educational assessment for all children with special educational needs.
- consequent development of a statutory individual educational plan (IEP).
- the delivery of detailed educational services on foot of this plan.
- an independent appeals process.
Since EPSEN was enacted, the Department’s policy on supporting children with special educational needs has changed and evolved on foot of evidence based policy advice from the NCSE which takes account of international perspectives.
Significantly, the focus of special needs education provision has changed from a model that is diagnosis led to one which is driven by the needs of the child. This is a substantially different view to the one underlying the EPSEN Act. The levels of investment by Government in special education has increased to facilitate the underlying reforms required to implement and embed the needs based approach.
It is therefore appropriate that a review of the EPSN Act should now take place.
As Minister for Special Education and Inclusion, I have indicated that one of my priorities is:
Updating our Laws: Reviewing and updating the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act
The review of the Act will take into account the extent of additional investment which has been made in special educational services since 2004, with some €2bn per year now being spent of special educational supports.
It will also take into account the range of reforms which have taken place in recent years including the development of new allocation models which are not based primarily on a response to assessment as policy advice has indicated that requirement of diagnosis can create a risk of children being diagnosed as having a special educational need for resource allocation purposes, rather than for health reasons. Also, that as there is a spectrum of ability and disability within every special education disability category, account must be taken of need, as well as diagnosis.
The terms of reference for this review are currently being established, following which, the group or body which will carry out the review, and the timeline for the review, will also be agreed.
