Paul Donnelly
Question:488. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Education if plans are in place to increase the number of early intervention places in primary schools with waiting lists of up to three years. [52262/21]
View answerTuesday, 2 November 2021
Questions (488)
Written answers
Autism early intervention special classes are intended to provide early support for pre-school aged autistic children before they start school.
Currently, there are 132 ASD early Intervention classes nationwide of which 11 were newly established classes for the 2021/22 school-year.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible for planning and coordinating provision at both a local and a national level and advising the Department in this regard.
A list of special classes, including Autism early intervention special classes for September 2021 is available on the NCSE website at:
ncse.ie/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Special-Classes-for-website-21-22_26.05.2021.pdf
Where no placement is available for a child in an ASD early intervention class, home tuition funding is available to Parents which can be used to fund early intervention.
Should parents/legal guardians wish to enter into a group arrangement with other parents/legal guardians of children for which home tuition has been approved, or if they wish to avail of a group arrangement where there is a current agreement with this Department, they must notify Special Education Section in advance for approval.
It is important to note that the principal vehicle for the delivery of pre-school education is the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Scheme which provides early childhood care and education for children of pre-school age.
Since 2016 the inclusion of children with a special needs, including Autism, in the ECCE Scheme has been supported under the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) for pre-school.
The goal of AIM is to create a more inclusive environment in pre-schools, so all children, regardless of ability, can benefit from quality early learning and care. The model achieves this by providing universal supports to pre-school settings, and targeted supports, which focus on the needs of the individual child, without requiring a diagnosis of disability.
Since 2016 AIM has supported over 11,000 pre-school aged children with SEN, including children ASD, to access their early childhood care and education in inclusive pre-school settings.