Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 June 2022
618. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Education the number of children with SEN that are currently sanctioned for home tuition on the grounds that they do not have a school placement or an early intervention class placement; the same data for the past five years in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34298/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra620. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Education the number of children with SEN in County Kildare who are currently sanctioned for home tuition on the grounds that they do not have a school placement or an early intervention class placement; the same data for the past five years in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34300/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 618 and 620 together.
The purpose of the Home Tuition Grant Scheme is to provide funding towards the provision of a compensatory educational service for children who, for a number of specific reasons, are unable to attend school.
The aim of the Department is to meet the needs of families and to ensure every child is allocated a suitable school placement. The preferred approach is that children are educated in school settings where children may have access to fully qualified teachers, individualised education programmes, special needs assistants, school curriculum with the option, where possible and appropriate, of full or partial integration and interaction with student peers.
Accordingly, home tuition is provided as an interim measure only for children for whom a placement in a recognised school is not currently available and should not be regarded as an optional alternative to a school placement.
The Special Education Needs Home Tuition Scheme provides funding towards a compensatory educational service for children with special educational needs for whom such a placement is not available. The scheme also provides for early educational intervention for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) ,who meet the scheme’s criteria, aged from 2.5 - 5 years before they start in school.
Children aged 4 years and over, including those with ASD, may enroll in primary placements (including special class and special schools placements).All children must be enrolled in the primary school system, whether through placement in mainstream classes, in special classes or in special schools in the September prior to their sixth birthday.
The applicable criteria under which children qualify for Home Tuition support are set out in Circular 0046/2022.
Details of the number of applications for Home Tuition support which were sanctioned for the last five years, for which information, is available in the table below. These figures relate to sanctions provided for the school year, in may cases places are found for children during the course of the school year.
|
2017/18 |
2018/19 |
2019/20 |
2020/21 |
2021/22 |
|
|
SEN Home Tuition |
|
|
|
||
|
ASD Early Intervention (2.5 – 3yrs) |
206 |
158 |
120 |
106 |
110 |
|
Age 3+ – 6yrs* |
806 |
779 |
632 |
670 |
702 |
|
Age 6yrs+ |
61 |
54 |
79 |
86 |
69 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
No for Kildare Sanction – Who do not have a school placement or an early intervention class placement (3+ - 6yrs and 6+ categories) |
26 |
25 |
22 |
30 |
33 |
*These relate in the main to the early intervention supports available to students before they commence in primary school.
