Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will answer the Senator's latter question first. Our understanding is that many children from Ukraine with very complex needs are being supported in countries very close to Ukraine probably because of the travel and that a country like Ireland is so far away. Officials in the Department of Education are in close contact with the HSE. It has confirmed that the number of adults and children with disabilities arriving here is quite small. My understanding is that only about seven or eight children from Ukraine are in special classes or special schools. That is not to say there will not be more.

The approach at the moment is that children should be facilitated in local settings and that they should not be assessed in the very first instance. We want to get them settled first of all. That is based on a psychological first-aid model. It is better to do that given that they can be so traumatised coming from a war-torn country. Obviously, the NCSE has the information and they would be put into a specialised setting if that is needed. The special educational needs organiser, SENO, meets parents with the aid of an interpreter. The NCSE has also translated about 56 different documents into Russian and Ukrainian to help with the language barrier. The NCSE so is engaging on an ongoing basis where children with autism or any type of additional need are identified.

They are part of the regional education and language teams, REALT, that the Minister, Deputy Foley, mentioned. They know where the children are and they support them through that. They are obviously in touch with the education welfare service and the Tusla education support service, TESS. The National Educational Psychological Service helps with psychological supports.

The other part of the response relates to summer provision. We hope the Ukrainians will avail the dedicated inclusion programmes this summer. Evidence would suggest that particularly for younger children an activity-based environment is better than learning the language. It is the best way for them to integrate in that way. Considerable good work is being done for Ukrainians. They are fully supported and if they need more special education teaching, SET, support - obviously the language comes under that as well - they can be given that. They can also be given more special needs assistance, SNA, support.