Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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Question 1540: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if, in the event of a person (details supplied) in County Waterford being sanctioned for home tuition for the 2007/2008 school year and bearing in mind the tremendous progress being made by the pupil with the present tuition provider, she will also sanction the present tuition provider for the 2007/2008 school year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1513/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The home tuition scheme provides funding to parents to provide education at home for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school. The scheme was extended in recent years to facilitate tuition for children awaiting a suitable educational placement.

Having reviewed a number of applications for home tuition, details regarding the qualifications of some of the proposed tuition providers gave rise to concern. The Deputy will appreciate, that as home tuition takes place outside of the normal school framework, there is need to ensure that tuition providers are appropriately qualified to give education to the children concerned. The usual requirement is a fully qualified teacher. However, other qualifications are acceptable depending on the individual needs of the child. A comprehensive review of qualifications has taken place in consultation with my Department's Inspectorate resulting in a definitive list of qualifications acceptable under the scheme as appropriate to the individual pupils. In this context the clarity that now exists in relation to qualifications should assist the parents concerned in sourcing suitable tutors.

Nominated tuition providers with qualifications other than teaching qualifications have been accepted for the first school term this year to allow time to undertake the review. In cases where the tuition provider is not approved a direction has been given to recruit a tuition provider with suitable qualifications. However my Department is prepared to facilitate parents/guardians who experience difficulties in recruiting a tuition provider with suitable qualifications by extending the sanction with the current tuition provider until the end of the school year 2006/07 to facilitate the recruitment process.

I wish to advise the Deputy that the parents/guardians of all children who are sanctioned home tuition for the 2007/2008 school year will be obliged to recruit a suitably qualified tuition provider in line with my Department's guidelines.

As the Deputy is aware, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) came into operation on 1st January 2005. One of the specific functions of the NCSE, through its network of local special educational needs organisers (SENOs), is to ensure that there is sufficient educational provision available within the primary and post primary sector for all children with special educational needs. It is open to the parent to contact a school directly with a view to having their child enrolled. Contact may also be made with the relevant SENO through the NCSE, Mill Street, Trim, Co. Meath, telephone number (046) 9486400 or by accessing the NCSE website at www.ncse.ie.