22 September 2011

Parliamentary Questions

• Supporting children with special education needs
• National Literacy Strategy
• Continuation of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme
• Total number of SNAs employed at present
• Allocation of remaining quota of SNAs
• Implementation of EPSEN
• Names of External Reports commissioned by Dept. Education from 1997-2000
• Level of resources for children with special education needs

PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS  

• Supporting children with special education needs

Deputy Bernard J. Durkan (FG): asked the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which he expects to meet in full or in part the ongoing educational requirements of children with special needs in view of the importance of ensuring that such children have ready access to education facilities in line with their requirements in order that they, in the future, can have a reasonable chance of contributing to the economy and their own independence;

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Ruairí Quinn):  Firstly, I wish to reiterate this Government’s commitment to the provision of resources for children with special educational needs. The Programme for Government sets out that education will be a priority for this Government and that we will endeavour to protect and enhance the educational experience of children, young people and students. Approximately 15% of the entire budget of my Department — some €1.3 billion — will be spent in support of children with Special Educational Needs this year. This provision is in line with expenditure in 2010 and shows that despite the current economic difficulties, funding for special education has not been cut. This Government is committed to the protection of frontline services for pupils with special educational needs. 10,575 whole time equivalent (wte) Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts are being provided for primary, post-primary and special schools for the coming school year in order to support the care needs of pupils with disabilities. This represents an increase over the December 2010 position where 10,543 posts were provided. Unlike other areas of the public sector SNA vacancies can be filled up to the approved number. Approximately 9,950 learning support/resource teacher posts, including those provided under the General Allocation Model, are also being provided in primary & post primary schools in order to provide additional teaching support to pupils with special educational needs. This represents an increase of approximately 350 whole time equivalent posts over last year’s allocation.Over 1,000 teachers are also being provided for in special schools providing teaching to pupils with various disabilities at much reduced pupil: teacher ratios, for example the autism PTR is 6:1 and the moderate general learning disability PTR is 8:1. Enhanced levels of school capitation are payable to most special schools and special classes and special School Transport arrangements for pupils with disabilities are provided at a cost of over €60m per year. Approximately €1.3m is also provided annually to schools for assistive technology support. Early educational intervention is provided for children with autism from 2½ years of age. There are now 56 early intervention classes for children with autism attached to mainstream schools that are funded by the Department. Funding is also provided through the home tuition programme for children with autism aged from 2 ½ years to 5 who are unable to access an early intervention class. An extended school year is also currently available for pupils who have either a severe/profound general learning disability or who have autism. The continued commitment of this Government to special education provision, at a time when savings are being required across a range of expenditure areas, will ensure that children with special educational needs can continue to have access to educational facilities in line with their requirements.

• National Literacy Strategy

Deputy Peadar Tóibín (SF): asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the national literacy strategy for children and young persons; if every school will be required to have a literacy action plan in place for the new school term; and the supports that have been made available to teaching staff to help them deliver the action plan.

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Ruairí Quinn):  I published Literacy and Numeracy for Learning and Life, the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020, on 8 July. Good progress has already been made on implementing the early actions identified in the Strategy. One of the key actions in the Strategy is to require all schools to engage in robust self evaluation and put in place a three-year school improvement plan which includes specific targets for the promotion and improvement of literacy and numeracy. Schools will be required to put these plans in place by the end of the 2012-13 school year as outlined in the Strategy. Robust school self-evaluation will enable schools to identify strengths and areas for development in their own work and will focus particularly on literacy and numeracy. Arising from school self-evaluation, schools will be enabled to draw up targets and actions for improvement which will be included in their School Improvement Plans.The Inspectorate of my Department is finalising draft materials to support the implementation of school self-evaluation. These materials will be in addition to Looking at Our School — Primary and Looking at Our School — Post-primary which are already available on the website of my Department. The additional new sample materials will be in pilot use in a selected sample of primary and post-primary schools later this year. Inspectors will be working with the staffs of these schools to refine the materials and develop self-evaluation practices in the schools. In addition, members of the Inspectorate and staff from the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST) will be providing inputs on school self-evaluation to teachers and school leaders at various professional development networks during this school year. A range of professional development courses in literacy and numeracy were provided to teachers over the summer vacation period. Over 10,400 teachers completed summer in-service courses in literacy, over 1,270 teachers completed courses in numeracy and mathematics and a further 1,230 teachers completed courses in Irish. The PDST will be providing further courses to teachers in these areas in the course of this school year. 

• Continuation of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme

Deputy Terence Flanagan (FG): asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the position regarding the continuation of the preschool year (details supplied);

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (Deputy Frances Fitzgerald):  The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme was introduced in January 2010 and provides a free preschool year to all eligible children in the year before commencing primary school. Almost every preschool service in the State is participating in the programme ensuring that it is available to children in all areas, and 63,000 children, or 94% of the eligible age cohort, availed of the programme in the 2010/11 preschool year. In 2011, the ECCE programme is expected to cost €166 million. Services participating in the ECCE programme are required to provide age-appropriate activities and programmes to children within the Síolta framework for early learning. They are also encouraged to implement the Aistear curriculum which has been developed for children aged from birth to 6 years. The ECCE programme is universally available, free of charge, to all preschool children and I believe this is critical to ensuring equality of access and school readiness.While I understand that some parents may have concerns about the future provision of the ECCE programme, given the current economic difficulties, I would like to assure you of the Government’s ongoing commitment to early childhood care and education. Preschool services currently participating in the programme have a legal contractual agreement up to the end of August 2012 and planning is already underway for the September 2012/August 2014 period of the programme. Having said this, you will appreciate that all programme funding is considered in the context of the annual estimates and budgetary process and it is not possible to give a specific guarantee in advance of these discussions. Clearly resources are scarce. However, my objective is to incrementally develop the ECCE programme over the term of this Government. A key element of this will be to support implementation of the Workforce Development Plan, by the Early Education Policy Unit of the Department of Education and Skills, which is co-located within my Department. The Workforce Development Plan provides a framework for ensuring that personnel working in the ECCE sector have access to accredited training, enabling quality and standards in ECCE services to be continuously improved. From May of this year, my Department has been working with two major voluntary child care organisations to provide subsidised on-line accredited training courses to staff working within ECCE services. I hope to continue this initiative in 2012, by supporting training modules which have a specific focus on educating children with special needs and children with literacy and numeracy difficulties. In addition, I will be collaborating closely with my colleague, the Minister for Education and Skills, in implementing the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy. Early intervention is crucial and the Strategy provides for a range of actions to support preschool children and their families, to be undertaken by my Department.The current arrangements within the Health Service Executive (HSE) for the provision of support services to preschool children with special needs is being examined by the Office of Disability and Mental Health in the Department of Health, and my Department will continue to liaise with that Office. In addition, I have asked officials in my Department to examine various options for additional provision or improvements to the ECCE programme, in particular for marginalised groups, including children with special needs. 

• Total number of SNAs employed at present

Deputy Michael Moynihan (FF): asked the Minister for Education and Skills the total number of special needs assistants employed at present; if further approvals will be made for this school year;

Deputy Ruairí Quinn (Minister for Education and Skills): The National Council for Special Education, NCSE, has advised all mainstream schools of their special needs assistant, SNA, allocations for the 2011-2012 school year. SNA provision in special schools is currently being reviewed. Some 475 of the total 10,575 SNA posts available are being retained in order to allocate them over the coming school year in cases such as emergency, appeals, acquired injuries or new school entrants. Approximately 10,100 whole time equivalent SNA posts have therefore been allocated to date. The NCSE will publish details of the SNA allocations which they have made to schools to date for the 2011-2012 school year. This will be available on the NCSE website shortly at www.ncse.ie, a new departure undertaken by the NCSE at my request. The NCSE has capacity to increase SNA allocations for schools from the retained pool of 475 posts. However, as these posts have to cater for demand to the end of the school year school year the NCSE must manage the allocation of any additional posts in a measured and prioritised manner. 

• Allocation of remaining quota of SNAs

Deputy Catherine Murphy (I): asked the Minister for Education and Skills when it is intended to allocate the remaining special needs assistants; the number of requests from schools seeking SNA support; the number already allocated to primary and second level schools;

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Ruairí Quinn):  The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department’s criteria in allocating such support. This now includes a requirement for the NCSE to have regard to an overall cap on the number of SNA posts. Having considered all of the applications for SNA support which have been received from mainstream primary and post primary schools, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has now advised all mainstream schools of their SNA allocations for the 2011/12 school year, taking into account the number of valid applications for SNA support and the assessed care needs of the children concerned. SNA provision in special schools is currently being reviewed.As not all applications for SNA support can be made in advance of the school year, in order to prudently manage this valuable but limited resource, the NCSE and my Department decided that 475 of the 10,575 posts should be retained in order to allocate them over the coming school year in cases such as emergency, appeals, acquired injuries or new school entrants with special needs care. Approximately 10,100 whole time equivalent (WTE) SNA posts have therefore been allocated to date. 6,030 WTE posts have been allocated to primary schools, 1,974 to post primary schools and 2,028 to special schools (including special schools for autism). In addition, there are 60 early child care workers posts which are included under the cap on SNA posts. The NCSE intends to publish details of all of the Special Needs Assistant allocations which they have made to schools to date, for the 2011/12 school year. This will be available on the NCSE website shortly at www.ncse.ie.The NCSE has capacity to increase SNA allocations for schools from the retained pool of 475 posts. However, as these posts have to last for the school year the NCSE must manage the allocation of any additional posts in a measured and prioritised manner. The care needs of pupils for whom any new applications are being made must be assessed in the context of the existing levels of SNA support available to the school.It is expected that schools, before requesting any review of their SNA provision, will be in a position to demonstrate that they have made every effort to manage their allocation of SNA posts to best effect. 

• Implementation of EPSEN

Deputy Dessie Ellis (SF): asked the Minister for Education and Skills    if he will implement the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act in order to ensure inclusive education practices that are underpinned by a series of statutory rights in order that children with special education needs receive an education in an inclusive environment and achieve outcomes in accordance with their abilities.

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Ruairí Quinn):  The Deputy will be aware that a number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act have already been commenced.The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) made recommendations which suggested that additional investment over a period of years of up to €235m per annum, across the education and health sectors, would be required to fully implement the EPSEN Act. My Department’s opinion is that the level of investment required would be greater than that envisaged in the NCSE report. In the light of the very difficult economic situation, and these significant costs, the previous Government deferred the full implementation of EPSEN. Given the costs involved and current fiscal constraints, addressing this issue will be very challenging. I will be considering how we can develop a plan to implement the objectives of the EPSEN Act so as to deliver improved educational outcomes for students with special needs. 

• Names of External Reports commissioned by Dept. Education from 1997-2000

Deputy Derek Keating (FG): asked the Minister for Education and Skills the name and number of external reports that were commissioned by his Department from 1997 to 2000 in tabular form; the cost of each one of these external reports; if these external reports were given out to tender; the name of the person or company who was commissioned for these external reports; his views of the benefits that these external reports served the public interest; Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Ruairí Quinn):  For the Deputy’s information, the list below of reports for the years in question (1997-2000) was compiled in response to previous parliamentary questions tabled some years ago. Of the fifty two reports commissioned during this timeframe, thirty four were implemented in full, a further 7 were partially implemented and some others were noted as project specific. Accordingly it would be reasonable to assume that the advice and recommendations provided by the reports assisted the Department in the development of policies and procedures for the benefit of the Department and the wider education sector.

Note: The totals for 1997-2000 inclusive are given in Irish Punts £

• Level of resources for children with special education needs

Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills  the total number of children with special needs for whom facilities were reduced following the measures introduced by the previous Administration; the extent, if any, to which any alleviation can be offered which might address the issues arising within the financial constraints prevailing; the degree, if any, to which he can set aside any provision to meet requirements of the most serious cases of special needs which might not be anticipated in the context of previous budgetary projections with particular reference to addressing the needs of those children whose development might be impaired permanently as a result of the economic situation; if he will examine the cases of those most severely affected by shortages in the facilities for children with special needs with a view to some alleviation measures;

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Ruairí Quinn): This Government is committed to the protection of frontline services for pupils with special educational needs. 10,575 whole time equivalent (wte) Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts are being provided for primary, post-primary and special schools for the coming school year in order to support the care needs of pupils with disabilities. This represents an increase over the December 2010 position where 10,543 posts were provided. Approximately 9,950 learning support/resource teacher posts, including those provided under the General Allocation Model, are also being provided in primary & post primary schools in order to provide additional teaching support to pupils with special educational needs. This represents an increase of approximately 350 whole time equivalent posts over last year’s allocation. There has therefore not been a reduction in the overall level of resources being provided for children with special educational needs. The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department’s criteria in allocating such support. This now includes a requirement for the NCSE to have regard to an overall cap on the number of SNA posts. Having considered all of the applications for SNA support which have been received from mainstream primary and post primary schools, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has now advised all mainstream schools of their SNA allocations for the 2011/12 school year, taking into account the number of valid applications for SNA support and the assessed care needs of the children concerned. SNA provision in special schools is currently being reviewed.As not all applications for SNA support can be made in advance of the school year, in order to prudently manage this valuable but limited resource, the NCSE and my Department decided that 475 of the 10,575 posts should be retained in order to allocate them over the coming school year in cases such as emergency, appeals, acquired injuries or new school entrants with special needs care. The NCSE therefore has capacity to increase SNA provision for schools from the retained pool of 475 posts. However, as these posts have to last for the school year the NCSE must manage the allocation of any additional posts in a measured and prioritised manner. The care needs of pupils for whom any new applications are being made must be assessed in the context of the existing levels of SNA support available to the school. It is expected that schools, before requesting any review of their SNA provision, will be in a position to demonstrate that they have made every effort to manage their allocation of SNA posts to best effect. In relation to the allocation of Resource Teaching hours, schools were asked to forward as soon as possible any outstanding applications, or additional outstanding materials to support incomplete applications, to the NCSE for consideration, but in any event by no later than 16 September 2011. NCSE are now giving consideration with regard to the number of applications received, as to whether there is potential to revise the 90% allocation previously given to schools, and also the extent to which new Resource Teaching allocations can be made, taking into account the number of valid new applications received and in the context of my Departments Employment Control Framework obligations.

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