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

I thank the Deputy for his question. All of us, especially myself as Minister of State with responsibility for special education, are aware of the difficulties children with additional needs have faced during the pandemic, not the least of which were the difficulties they faced in respect of remote learning. However, it is important to stress that supports were given at the time. There was enhanced digital communication, there were teaching and learning platforms and additional guidance was given to schools. We can all accept that it was not an ideal learning environment not only for children with additional needs, but for children without additional needs as well. For this reason, we prioritised support for this vulnerable group. It is important to stress that special schools and special classes were the first cohort of children to come back after the school closures. They were prioritised. We matched our words with action and action ultimately means funding. The first programme we put in place was the supplementary programme, which was available to schools and children between February and April of this year. Funding for this amounted to €10 million and approximately 14,000 to 15,000 children availed of the programme. It provided five hours of one-on-one tuition per week. This was important in ensuring the risk of regression was not realised because that can understandably happen. We also put in place an expanded programme of summer provision. We doubled the funding to €40 million this year. Some 34,000 children availed of that programme. We wanted children to be able to rebuild their confidence. We wanted them to be motivated and we wanted to promote their well-being and inclusion. We also have the new Covid-19 learning and support scheme, CLASS. This has €52.6 million in funding and is available to schools to help children with additional needs and to further their inclusion.

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