Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 November 2022
519. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Education the number of applications received for the academic year for transport for children with additional needs; and the number that have been processed, by county, in tabular form. [54268/22]
View answerSchool Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. The cost in 2021 was over €289m.
Under the terms of my Department's School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs, children are eligible for transport where they are attending the nearest recognised school that is or can be resourced to meet their special educational needs.
The National Council for Special Education through its network of Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs) acts in an advisory role to my Department on the suitability of placements for children with special educational needs.
A pupil with special educational needs is eligible for school transport if s/he is attending the nearest recognised: mainstream school, special class / special school or a unit, that is or can be resourced, to meet the child's special educational needs under Department of Education and Skills criteria.
Eligibility is determined following consultation with the National Council for Special Education through its network of Special Education Needs Organisers (SENO).
It is not possible to provide the information in the manner requested by the Deputy, as applications are currently at various stages of the assessment process.
Over 17,500 children are currently availing of Special Educational Needs (SEN) Transport which in an increase of over 2,000 availing of transport in the previous school year. So far for the 2022/2023 school year, 4,968 new SEN applications have been received. This figure is an increase of over 11% on all SEN applications in the 2021/2022 school year.
The remaining applications are at various stages of progression with the majority of these applications having been received since 01 August 2022. These applications will be catered for through a mix of new services (some being individual), children being accommodated on existing services where capacity exists, extensions of existing routes or offer of a grant to families.
