Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 June 2021
313. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education the number of children with special educational needs that have gone through section 29 in the past three years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34149/21]
View answerSection 7 of the Education (Admissions to Schools) Act 2018 came into operation on the 12 November 2020 and provided for the replacement of the existing Section 29 of the Education Act 1998 with a series of new sections numbered 29 to 29F. These new appeal provisions in sections 29 to 29F are designed to work alongside the wider admissions framework in the 2018 Act. In accordance with section 29B of the Education Act, 1998 the Minister also determined procedures for appeals which applied to all appeals received from 12 November 2020 onwards.
Since the commencement of the new arrangements for appeals on the 12 November 2020 to date a total of 95 appeals have been made under section 29 of the Education Act where the applicant has indicated that the child has special educational needs.
Prior to 12 November 2020 the data was not categorised in the same manner and therefore, we cannot provide data in relation to the numbers of appeals which related to children with special educational needs for previous years.
