Sorca Clarke
Ceist:577. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Education if she will provide a list of where the funding allocated for SEN in Budget 2024 is being spent, in tabular form. [57352/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraSpecial Educational Needs
Ceisteanna (577)
Freagraí scríofa
Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education and Inclusion, for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
For 2024 my department will spend almost €2.8 billion of current expenditure on special education. This includes funding to support children with special educational needs in mainstream classes; funding for special classes and special school places; special educational teachers, special needs assistants (SNAs) and funding for the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
For 2024, we will have over 41,500 qualified and committed people in our schools who are focused wholly and exclusively on supporting children with special educational needs.
Attached is a table outlining the Special Education budget allocation as requested.
Special Education Budget 2024
|
Breakdown by provision |
|
|
Teachers |
€1.6bn |
|
SNA’s |
€871m |
|
School Transport |
€181m |
|
NEPS |
€37m |
|
NCSE |
€37m |
|
Other Capitation and Grants |
€53m |
|
Total |
€2.8bn |
|
Vote 26 Gross Current Expenditure |
€9.9bn |
|
TOTAL SPECIAL NEEDS AS % OF GROSS CURRENT EXPENDITURE |
28% |
Special Educational Needs
Ceisteanna (578)
Sorca Clarke
Ceist:578. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Education if she plans to ensure that data will be collected on the educational outcomes for people of the deaf and of the hearing communities. [57354/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
My department recognises the importance of monitoring educational outcomes for all children with special educational needs who require additional supports in their educational journey. Outcome measures include student engagement, attainment, attendance, happiness, independence and progress.
My department has requested the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) to include in their 2024 research programme an examination of educational outcomes as outlined in the question raised and to provide same to the department when completed in the coming year.
My department and the NCSE are committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.
Special Educational Needs
Ceisteanna (579)
Sorca Clarke
Ceist:579. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Education if she will consider publishing centralised data every year on the number of children with SEN without an appropriate school place. [57356/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education and Inclusion, for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
The vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. Where children with more complex needs require additional supports, special classes and special school places are provided.
In 2023, my department spent over €2.6 billion on special education and further progress will be made this year as an additional €113m will be dedicated to providing supports for children with special educational needs.
This includes funding to support children with special educational needs in mainstream classes; funding for new special classes and new special school places; additional special educational teachers, special needs assistants (SNAs) and funding for the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS).
In 2024, the number of teaching and SNA posts in our schools will increase with an additional 744 teachers and 1,216 SNAs added to deliver up to 2,700 new places for children with special educational needs. This will mean we will have over 41,500 qualified and committed people in our schools who are focused wholly and exclusively on supporting children with special educational needs.
The NCSE has the responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children with special educational needs nationwide.
Over the last two to three years, my department and the NCSE have introduced a number of strategic initiatives to plan for and provide sufficient special class and special school places.
These initiatives are bearing fruit with almost 1,300 new special classes sanctioned and seven new special schools established over the last four years.
My department engage intensely with the NCSE in relation to the forward planning of new special classes and additional special school places. This forward planning work is well underway ahead of the 2024/25 school year. This work involves a detailed review of statistical data in relation to forecasting demand for special class places, an analysis of available school accommodation, consideration of improved data sharing arrangements and a particular focus on the provision of special classes at post-primary level.
As a result of this forward planning, Minister Foley and l announced the establishment of two special schools for this school year, with further capacity being expanded in 11 other special schools and that a further four special schools for the 2024/25 school year will be established.
Along with the two new special schools, 389 new special classes – 253 at primary and 136 at post-primary level – have been sanctioned by the NCSE for opening this school year.
As demand for new special classes at post-primary level is expected to increase significantly over the next few years, due to increasing demographics and increasing prevalence rates, my department and the NCSE have engaged with post-primary stakeholders in relation to the provision of special classes.
My department has communicated to all post-primary schools of the need to begin planning to provide additional special classes. It is envisaged that all post-primary schools will be required to provide special classes over the next 2 to 4 years, with an approximate average of 4 special classes in each school.
It is open to any school to make an application to the NCSE for the establishment of a specialised provision and where sanctioned, a range of supports, including capital funding, is made available to the school.
Additionally, it is general practice to include a special educational need base in the accommodation brief for new school buildings, unless exceptional local circumstances indicate that it will not be required. The extent of provision made at these schools is informed by the level of demand in the area as well as the size of the school.
Parents seeking special class placements for their children are advised to contact the NCSE locally so that their needs can be taken into account for planning purposes. The local special educational needs organisers (SENOs) remain available to assist and advise parents of children with special educational needs. Parents may contact SENOs directly using the contact details available at: www.ncse.ie/regional-services-contact-list.
Information on the list of schools with special classes, the types and locations of these classes is published on the NCSE website and is available at: www.ncse.ie/special-classes.
I want to assure the Deputy that my department and the NCSE are committed to ensuring that sufficient special education placements are available for children for this school year and future years. This will be achieved through the continued strong delivery of new special class and special school places.
National Educational Psychological Service
Ceisteanna (580)
Sorca Clarke
Ceist:580. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of increasing the number of educational psychologists by 40%. [57357/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
NEPS currently has 236 psychologists. This includes a Director, 9 Regional Directors, 45 seniors and 181 maingrade psychologists. The cost of engaging an additional main grade psychologist is €78,435.00. This cost includes pay and non-pay costs. The cost of increasing the number of educational psychologists by 40% (95 additional psychologists) is €7,451,325.
School Staff
Ceisteanna (581)
Sorca Clarke
Ceist:581. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Education the estimated cost of employing a full-time guidance counsellor in every secondary school and an additional position for schools over 500 pupils. [57359/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
My Department has committed considerable resources towards the restoration of guidance counselling hours to post-primary schools, to the provision of CPD for guidance counsellors and to the provision of a national guidance counselling supervision service for post-primary guidance counsellors in recent times.
The guidance allocation is provided separately and transparently on each school's staffing schedule. These posts have been ring-fenced so they can only be used for guidance activities and to meet the guidance needs of the school.
Current expenditure on guidance counsellors posts in second level schools stands at €68 million.
There are 409 post primary schools with an enrolment in excess of 500 pupils. The average cost of a post primary teacher is currently €73,270.
School Staff
Ceisteanna (582)
Michael Healy-Rae
Ceist:582. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education further to Parliamentary Question No. 212 of 23 November 2023 (details supplied), if she will reply to same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57373/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
Following the Deputy’s parliamentary Question No. 212 of 23 November 2023, I can confirm that my Department did investigate this matter raised in respect of the tutor concerned.
As of last week, I can confirm that the Department has been in contact with the tutor for further required information and it is expected that matters will be fully resolved shortly in relation to the balance of payment. While we endeavour to pay all claims in a timely manner, it is important that where there are queries arising, these are dealt with thoroughly and with a view to ensuring that all terms and conditions have been met.
School Funding
Ceisteanna (583)
Peter Burke
Ceist:583. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Education the criteria used to allocate funding under the STEM grants for schools; if funding will be allocated again in 2024; if a school application (details supplied) will be reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57375/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I can advise the Deputy that the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant scheme was an action in the new STEM Education Implementation Plan published in 2023. The grant was to support schools in carrying out projects to stimulate an increased interest in STEM and included an application process as with other STEM initiatives in the past such as the STEM clusters project.
When the grant scheme was announced the Department indicated that it had funding of €1.5m available. There was a phenomenal demand from schools with around 3,000 applications received. Every application received by the deadline of 5pm on the 30th November was read and processed, leaving 2,727 schools with an ask amounting of over €25m.
Given the very high number of valid applications and the budget available for the scheme, a decision was made by the Department to run a lottery, where a random number generator was used to pick out schools based on their line on the spreadsheet. The application for each school was then assessed on a case by case basis with the applications read again by the evaluation team, to ensure they met the requirements as set out in the grant call. Any school deemed not to have met the requirements was removed. The procedure was then repeated until all the budget available was allocated.
As the initial funding available at the time of call for applications was €1.5m, the Department worked to secure as much additional funding as possible, bringing the total available to €4.7m. Unfortunately, on this occasion, this additional funding fell short of the ask of over €25m. The Department is front loading the grant scheme in 2023/2024 school year and it is hoped that a further round of funding can be run this year. This means that eligible schools that were not successful this time may receive funding in the future.
There was limited budget allocated to this grant scheme and all that money has been allocated. In relation to any future funding that becomes available, the Department will be in contact with schools including Taughmon N.S.
School Funding
Ceisteanna (584)
Peter Burke
Ceist:584. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Education what criteria was used to allocate funding under the STEM grants for schools; if funding will be allocated again in 2024; if a school application (details supplied) will be reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57382/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I can advise the Deputy that the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant scheme was an action in the new STEM Education Implementation Plan published in 2023. The grant was to support schools in carrying out projects to stimulate an increased interest in STEM and included an application process as with other STEM initiatives in the past such as the STEM clusters project.
When the grant scheme was announced the Department indicated that it had funding of €1.5m available. There was a phenomenal demand from schools with around 3,000 applications received. Every application received by the deadline of 5pm on the 30th November was read and processed, leaving 2,727 schools with an ask amounting of over €25m.
Given the very high number of valid applications and the budget available for the scheme, a decision was made by the Department to run a lottery, where a random number generator was used to pick out schools based on their line on the spreadsheet. The application for each school was then assessed on a case by case basis with the applications read again by the evaluation team, to ensure they met the requirements as set out in the grant call. Any school deemed not to have met the requirements was removed. The procedure was then repeated until all the budget available was allocated.
As the initial funding available at the time of call for applications was €1.5m, the Department worked to secure as much additional funding as possible, bringing the total available to €4.7m. Unfortunately, on this occasion, this additional funding fell short of the ask of over €25m. The Department is front loading the grant scheme in 2023/2024 school year and it is hoped that a further round of funding can be run this year. This means that eligible schools that were not successful this time may receive funding in the future.
It should be noted that the Department also supports STEM through other areas such as teacher professional development and the development of resources, as well as through supporting initiatives such as SciFest, ESB Science Blast, the Discover programme with Science Foundation Ireland and BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition.
I am aware of the time and effort that was put in by schools to the application process and the frustration felt by the schools however there was limited budget allocated to this grant scheme and all that money has been allocated. In relation to any future funding that becomes available, the Department will be in contact with schools including St. Baoithín National School.
Special Educational Needs
Ceisteanna (585)
Paul Kehoe
Ceist:585. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Education the status of an ASD class in a secondary school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57383/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education and Inclusion, for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
The vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. Where children with more complex needs require additional supports, special classes and special school places are provided.
In 2023, my department spent over €2.6 billion on special education and further progress will be made this year as an additional €113m will be dedicated to providing supports for children with special educational needs.
This includes funding to support children with special educational needs in mainstream classes; funding for new special classes and new special school places; additional special educational teachers, special needs assistants (SNAs) and funding for the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS).
In 2024, the number of teaching and SNA posts in our schools will increase with an additional 744 teachers and 1,216 SNAs added to deliver up to 2,700 new places for children with special educational needs. This will mean we will have over 41,500 qualified and committed people in our schools who are focused wholly and exclusively on supporting children with special educational needs.
The NCSE has the responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs.
Over the last number of years, my department and the NCSE have introduced a number of strategic initiatives to plan for and provide sufficient special class and special school places.
These initiatives are bearing fruit with almost 1,300 new special classes sanctioned and seven new special schools established over the last four years.
My department engage intensely with the NCSE in relation to the forward planning of new special classes and additional special school places. This forward planning work is well underway ahead of the 2024/25 school year. This work involves a detailed review of statistical data in relation to forecasting demand for special class places, an analysis of available school accommodation, consideration of improved data sharing arrangements and a particular focus on the provision of special classes at post-primary level.
As a result of this forward planning, Minister Foley and l announced the establishment of two special schools for this school year, with further capacity being expanded in 11 other special schools and that a further four special schools for the 2024/25 school year will be established, including a new special school in Gorey, Co. Wexford.
Along with the two new special schools, 389 new special classes – 253 at primary and 136 at post-primary level – have been sanctioned by the NCSE for opening this school year.
In Co. Wexford, there are currently 101 special classes in mainstream schools. Of these, 73 are at primary level and 28 are at post-primary level and 14 are newly sanctioned for this school year, 11 at primary and 3 at post-primary level.
As demand for new special classes at post-primary level is expected to increase significantly over the next few years, due to increasing demographics and increasing prevalence rates, my department and the NCSE have engaged with post-primary stakeholders in relation to the provision of special classes.
My department has communicated to all post-primary schools of the need to begin planning to provide additional special classes. It is envisaged that all post-primary schools will be required to provide special classes over the next 2 to 4 years, with an approximate average of 4 special classes in each school.
In relation to the school referred to by the Deputy, the NCSE have advised my department that an autism specific class was sanctioned for the school in December 2022 subject to local demand.
The opening of any new classes is based on receipt of information in relation to pupils with professional reports that meet the department's eligibility criteria for enrolment in autism specific classes and confirmation of available places in existing classes due to identified leavers. The NCSE continues to closely monitor all incoming information and liaise with the relevant local educational professionals to plan for pupils with special educational needs in the region and nationally.
The NCSE has advised my department that planning for special class provision in Co. Wexford for 2024/25 and onwards is ongoing. Their local team of Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs) are currently in contact with schools for confirmation of attenders and leavers for the 2023/24 academic year. This will facilitate the compiling of information in relation to special class demand. They will have regular meetings with their team managers to plan for existing special classes and identify possible new classes where they are most needed. Special classes are sanctioned to plan for current and future demand. Said sanctioned classes are then opened based both on local verified demand and in consultation with my department.
Parents seeking special class placements for their children are advised to contact the NCSE locally so that their needs can be taken into account for planning purposes. The local special educational needs organisers (SENOs) remain available to assist and advise parents of children with special educational needs. Parents may contact SENOs directly using the contact details available at: www.ncse.ie/regional-services-contact-list.
Information on the list of schools with special classes, the types and locations of these classes is published on the NCSE website and is available at: www.ncse.ie/special-classes.
My department and the NCSE are committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.
School Funding
Ceisteanna (586)
Cathal Crowe
Ceist:586. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Education if she will increase funding for STEM grants for schools, given the number of schools (details supplied) that applied versus those that were successful in receiving grants; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57400/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I can advise the Deputy that the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant scheme was an action in the new STEM Education Implementation Plan published in 2023. The grant was to support schools in carrying out projects to stimulate an increased interest in STEM and included an application process as with other STEM initiatives in the past such as the STEM clusters project.
When the grant scheme was announced the Department indicated that it had funding of €1.5m available. There was a phenomenal demand from schools with around 3,000 applications received. Every application received by the deadline of 5pm on the 30th November was read and processed, leaving 2,727 schools with an ask amounting of over €25m.
My Department worked to secure as much additional funding as possible, bringing it to a total of €4.7m. Unfortunately, the funding fell short of the ask of over €25m. Given the very high number of valid applications and the budget available for the scheme, a decision was made by the Department to run a lottery, where a random number generator was used to pick out schools based on their line on the spreadsheet. The application for each school was then assessed on a case by case basis with the applications read again by the evaluation team, to ensure they met the requirements as set out in the grant call. Any school deemed not to have met the requirements was removed. The procedure was then repeated until all the budget available was allocated.
I can advise the Deputy that in total there were 530 schools that were awarded grants and of those 146 were DEIS schools and these were broken down as follows
|
DEIS school |
Primary |
Post-primary |
|
Urban |
44 |
9 |
|
Rural |
78 |
15 |
My Department is front loading the grant scheme in 2023/2024 school year and it is hoped that a further round of funding can be run this year. This means that eligible schools that were not successful this time may receive funding in the future.
I am aware of the time and effort that was put in by schools the application process and the frustration felt by the schools however there was limited money available to my Department. The Department will be in contact with schools in relation to any future funding that becomes available. The amount of funding available will depend on the priorities and demands on the Department’s allocated budget.
Schools Building Projects
Ceisteanna (587)
Eoin Ó Broin
Ceist:587. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Education to provide an update on the provision of the new build school for a school (details supplied). [1014/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The school mentioned is part of my Department's construction programme. It was originally planned to be delivered under the Design and Build programme and was progressed to planning permission stage.
8 Design and Build (D and B) projects (Lots 1 and 2) went to construction in 2021, with a further 10 projects (Lots 3, 4 and 5) progressed to construction in Summer 2022. A further 10 projects (Lot 6) progressed to tender stage in April 2023.
All of these projects are tendered to my Department’s current D and B Contractors Framework of three main contractor consortia. It will be 2024 before the next scheduled bundle of projects can be tendered to that framework and into late 2024 before further projects could proceed to tender.
In order to have projects delivered at the earliest possible opportunity, my Department is of the view that the intervening period can be utilised to bring a number of projects with planning permission, including the project referred to by the Deputy, to the level of employer-led design with a Design Team assigned to do so under the supervision of my Department’s project manager. This will ensure that such projects do not have to await capacity on the current framework to proceed to tender but rather can be progressed and actioned over that timeframe to tender outside of the D and B framework. It is envisaged that this will also serve to broaden the range and number of Contractors to which such projects can be tendered than would hitherto have been possible within the Design and Build Framework. This forms part of my Department’s ongoing strategic approach to seek to widen the pool of Contractors tendering for school building projects.
The process of appointing the Design Team from my Department’s Frameworks of Consultants was completed in September 2023 and the project is now progressing through design development stages. It is anticipated that the project will proceed to tender later this year.
My Department will keep the school and patron body updated in relation to progress.
School Funding
Ceisteanna (588)
Pádraig O'Sullivan
Ceist:588. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education if she will address matters raised in correspondence (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1022/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I can advise the Deputy that the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant scheme was an action in the new STEM Education Implementation Plan published in 2023. The grant was to support schools in carrying out projects to stimulate an increased interest in STEM and included an application process as with other STEM initiatives in the past such as the STEM clusters project.
When the grant scheme was announced the Department indicated that it had funding of €1.5m available. There was a phenomenal demand from schools with around 3,000 applications received. Every application received by the deadline of 5pm on the 30th November was read and processed, leaving 2,727 schools with an ask amounting of over €25m.
Given the very high number of valid applications and the budget available for the scheme, a decision was made by the Department to run a lottery, where a random number generator was used to pick out schools based on their line on the spreadsheet. The application for each school was then assessed on a case by case basis with the applications read again by the evaluation team, to ensure they met the requirements as set out in the grant call. Any school deemed not to have met the requirements was removed. The procedure was then repeated until all the budget available was allocated.
As the initial funding available at the time of call for applications was €1.5m, the Department worked to secure as much additional funding as possible, bringing the total available to €4.7m. Unfortunately, on this occasion, this additional funding fell short of the ask of over €25m. The Department is front loading the grant scheme in 2023/2024 school year and it is hoped that a further round of funding can be run this year. This means that eligible schools that were not successful this time may receive funding in the future.
It should be noted that the Department also supports STEM through other areas such as teacher professional development and the development of resources, as well as through supporting initiatives such as SciFest, ESB Science Blast, the Discover programme with Science Foundation Ireland and BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition.
I am aware of the time and effort that was put in by schools to the application process and the frustration felt by the schools however there was limited money available to my Department. The Department will be in contact with schools In relation to any future funding that becomes available.
School Funding
Ceisteanna (589)
Willie O'Dea
Ceist:589. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Education if there will be a further round of funding allocations for the unsuccessful STEM learning grant applicants, particularly for DEIS schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1025/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I can advise the Deputy that the grant scheme was open to any recognised primary, post-primary or special school within the free education scheme which included DEIS and non-DEIS schools. I can further advise that a total of 530 schools received grants and of those 146 were DEIS schools.
When the grant scheme was announced the Department indicated that it had funding of €1.5m available. There was a phenomenal demand from schools with around 3,000 applications received. Every application received by the deadline of 5pm on the 30th November was read and processed, leaving 2,727 schools with an ask amounting of over €25m.
As the initial funding available at the time of call for applications was €1.5m, the Department worked to secure as much additional funding as possible, bringing the total available to €4.7m. Unfortunately, on this occasion, this additional funding fell short of the ask of over €25m. The Department is front loading the grant scheme in 2023/2024 school year and it is hoped that a further round of funding can be run this year. This means that eligible schools that were not successful this time may receive funding in the future.
The Department will be in contact with schools in relation to any future funding that becomes available.