Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 5 December 2017
202. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the supports or resources available for primary schools to address behavioural issues in a school setting in the absence of special needs assistants. [51801/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe policy of my Department is to ensure that all children with special educational needs, including children with behavioural or learning difficulties can be provided with an education appropriate to their needs.
Where possible, provision is made for the inclusive education of children with special educational needs. My Department's policy is that students with special educational needs should be included where possible and appropriate in mainstream placements with additional supports provided.
In circumstances where children with special educational needs require more specialised interventions, special school or special class places are provided for.
Funding for special education provision in 2017 will amount to some €1.68 billion, which is equivalent to approximately 19% of the gross overall current allocation for education and training and represents an increase in spending in this area of 12% over the last two years.
There are currently over 13,400 special educational needs teacher posts in mainstream primary and post primary schools which includes an additional 900 teaching posts provided to support the introduction of the new model for allocating Special Education Teaching Resources to mainstream primary and post primary schools from September 2017.
In addition, 169 new Special Classes have been opened for the 2016/17 school year, which means there are now over 1,300 special classes in place, compared to 548 special classes in 2011. 1,042 special classes cater for students diagnosed with ASD (including 103 Early Intervention ASD special classes) and 11 cater specifically for students diagnosed with severe emotional behavioural disorders.
125 special schools also provide specialist education for those students with complex special educational needs.
This year, 13,990 Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) are available for allocation to primary and post primary schools to the end of December, which is an increase of 32% in the number of posts available since 2011.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE), which is an independent statutory agency, is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating a quantum of SNA support for each school annually taking into account the assessed care needs of children qualifying for SNA support enrolled in the school. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support, as set out in Circular 0030/2014.
Details of SNA allocations which have been made to schools for the 2017/18 school year have been published by the NCSE on their website at http://ncse.ie/statistics.
Where a school has received its allocation of SNA support for 2017/18, but wishes new enrolments or new assessments to be considered, which were not taken into account when the initial allocation was made, they may continue to make applications to the NCSE.
Schools may seek advice from their local National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) psychologist, from the NCSE’s Support Service through the Special Educational Needs Organiser (SENO), or the National Behavioural Support Service, as to how children with behavioural needs can best be supported in school.
The Special Education Support Service (SESS) now also part of NCSE’s Support Service, provides continuing professional development (CPD) for teachers working with students with special educational needs, including training for teachers in the area of challenging behaviour educational needs, including students diagnosed with severe behavioural disorders.
My Department’s National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides service to primary and post-primary schools countrywide. In general schools may prioritise the service they receive from NEPS to support children with learning and/or behavioural difficulties. NEPS assists schools to identify needs, and appropriate interventions, to review the efficacy of these interventions and to adjust approaches used for these children, through the use of a student support planning process.
The provision of direct treatment or therapies to children does not lie within the remit of my Department, teachers or NEPS psychologists, per se, but the range of therapeutic services provided by the HSE. It is to my colleague, the Minister for Health, therefore that I would advise that the Deputy’s question be directed in this regard.
