Special Educational Needs

Tuesday, 5 November 2024

Questions (368, 370)

Thomas Gould

Question:

368. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Education why funding has yet to be provided to a school (details supplied) to provide ASD classes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44030/24]

View answer

Thomas Gould

Question:

370. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Education why funding has yet to be provided to a school (details supplied) to provide ASD classes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44052/24]

View answer

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Education

I propose to take Questions Nos. 368 and 370 together.

Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

My department received an application under the Additional Schools' Accommodation (ASA) Scheme in 2021 from the school referred to by the Deputy. The application was for the provision of three special education classrooms and an in-depth review of the school site was undertaken given its restricted nature. The review confirmed that the school and the site were at maximum capacity and that it would not be possible to provide the required accommodation on site unless vast amounts of existing single storey accommodation was demolished and replaced with two storey accommodation.

At that time, considering all the relevant impediments to deliver the brief of accommodation and the site constraints, my department was not in a position to provide funding for the significant demolition of the school building. In light of this, officials in my department contacted the NCSE to advise them of same and to look to establish any special classes in other schools in the area.

Subsequently, funding was approved under the ASA Scheme in June 2022 for the replacement of a dilapidated prefab with 1 Modular Unit to accommodate 4 SET teachers. This project is devolved to the school authority for delivery with guidance from my department regarding use of the Modular Accommodation Framework. Department officials have recently confirmed to the school authority that their design team need to commence design of the unit in conjunction with the nominated modular supplier.

Following confirmation by the NCSE in January 2024 of the need for special classes in the area and the submission of an engineer’s condition report to my department in support of their proposal to knock and rebuild a portion of the school building, my department's technical team agreed to review the contents of the condition report. This review was undertaken and is now complete. However, the NCSE is continuing to review the special education provision requirements in the wider area.

The department met with the school patron on the 14 of May. The outcome of the NCSE review of special education provision needs in the school planning area is awaited to determine next steps.

409 new special classes have been sanctioned by the NCSE for the 2024/25 school year, of these 66 are in Cork, 43 at primary level and 23 at post primary level. This brings to 563 the number of special classes in the county. 491 of these are autism classes with a teacher/student ratio of 1:6.

Parents seeking special class placements for their children are advised to contact the NCSE locally for planning purposes. Local special educational needs organisers (SENOs) are available to assist and advise parents and can provide details on schools with available special educational places. Parents may contact SENOs directly using the contact details available on the NCSE website.

The NCSE have recruited additional special education needs organisers (SENOs), advisors and team managers. A total of 120 SENOs now operate nationwide, 18 of these are operating solely in County Cork. SENOs play an important role in ensuring there is adequate special educational provision within local areas and are currently visiting schools nationwide to conduct planning meetings. These visits will be key in terms of forward planning for the 2025/26 school year.

Question No. 369 answered with Question No. 367.

Question No. 370 answered with Question No. 368.