Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No.1:

To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that:

— a child's right to education is enshrined in the Constitution and, under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, must be accessible on an equal basis with others in the community in which they live; and

— the Government is committed to ensuring that each child with a special educational need (SEN) has an appropriate school place, in line with their Constitutional right and Programme for Government: Our Shared Future commitments;

further notes that:

— the Government's aim is to ensure that every child with additional needs receives an appropriate education based on their needs; providing an appropriate school placement for every child with SEN in a timely and supported manner is a key priority for the Department of Education and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE); the Government is absolutely committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential;

— special education is a priority area for investment for this Government, and this year the Department of Education will spend in excess of €2 billion, or over 25 per cent of the Department's budget, on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs;

— the Government recognises that where parents have difficulties in securing an appropriate school placement for their child, particularly a child with additional needs, it can be a very stressful experience; and the Department of Education is working hard to ensure that there are sufficient school places, appropriate to the needs of all children, available on a timely basis nationwide;

— there have been an additional 380 teachers recruited to support students to be enrolled in new special classes and new special schools for the 2022/23 school year;

— the Department of Education will continue to engage with the NCSE, school patrons and school authorities over the summer months to increase capacity where needed, and so far 1,800 additional places in 315 new special classes will become available in September 2022;

— continuing to add capacity in schools and special schools to support SEN provision is a key priority for the Government, and two new special schools were established in Dublin in 2021;

— following on from strategic engagement with the Spiritan Education Trust, a new special school will be established in the 2022/23 school year in existing accommodation at the Templeogue College campus in Dublin, enabling it to cater for up to 150 pupils with SEN when completed;

— in Cork, a new special school has been established in the 2021/22 school year and another one will be established in the 2022/23 school year;

— the Government has implemented a number of strategic initiatives over the last two years to transform the planning and coordination of SEN provision;

— Deputy Josepha Madigan, Minister of State at the Department of Education recently announced that the section 37A process to compel schools to increase SEN provision has been initiated for a third time, and that this process is now underway, this process is currently being reviewed as part of the review of the Education of Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004 and this review will take into account actual cases where section 37A has been used and the effectiveness for the child;

— work is also currently underway, in collaboration with the Office of the Attorney General, to consider whether emergency legislation would assist in the faster delivery of special educational placements;

— progress has been made in providing additional special class and special school places, however, the Government accepts that challenges remain in certain areas; and

— a key priority of the Ministers and Government is the delivery of special educational places for children who require such placements and intensive work will continue over the summer to provide further additional places for the new school year; and

furthermore notes that:

— significant investment has been made in the area of Special Education and that this is a key priority for both the Government and the Department of Education; and

— while significant progress has been made in adding capacity in schools and special schools to support Special Educational Needs, provision challenges still remain and that the Department of Education will continue to engage intensively with the NCSE, parents and all educational partners to continue to increase capacity."

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak to the motion. The Department of Education is committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is supported in reaching their full potential. We must have an education system that celebrates each child and young person within its care and strives to meets his or her individual needs. This is at the heart of what we do across the education sector and it is especially at the heart of special education provision, which is a priority area for investment for this Government.

I commend the excellent work happening in many schools around the country in this regard. As part of my work as Minister for Education, I am deeply fortunate to visit very many schools throughout the country and to meet with their students, staff, parents and broader community members. I am continually awed by the warmth, integrity and excellence in teaching and learning which I see in classrooms and schools throughout the country, including in respect of special education in both mainstream and specialised settings. This year, the Department will spend in excess of €2 billion, or more than 25% of the Department's budget, on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. This is right and proper and we will continue to increase investment to support students and young people over the term of this Government.

Departmental policy and educational expertise supports children with additional education needs being integrated in mainstream education to the greatest extent possible, with additional resources and supports such as differentiated learning, student support plans, special education teachers and SNAs being made available to schools and students. The total number of special education teachers in the mainstream school system is 14,385 in 2022 - an overall increase of 980 teaching posts. Provision has been made for 19,169 SNAs by the end of 2022, which represents an overall increase of 1,165 posts. It is important to note that students do not require a formal diagnosis or assessment to access these supports. This ensures that schools and students are able to access supports in a streamlined manner.

This being said, the Department recognises that some children and young people require more specialist support and it is committed to making special school and special class places available for these children. Ensuring that appropriate class placements are available for students remains one of the key priorities for the Department. One of the most difficult situations that can arise for any child or parent is for an appropriate school place to not be available for the child. I will use this opportunity to outline some of the progress that has been made as well as work that we are continuing to do in this regard because I recognise that work must continue apace to ensure that there is joined-up thinking and co-ordination in this regard.

The NCSE is statutorily responsible for planning and co-ordinating provision at both a local and a national level and advising the Department in that regard. A network of SENOs, who are located throughout the country, will continue to be available to assist and advise parents of children with special educational needs. There is ongoing intensive engagement between the Department, the NCSE and other key stakeholders on short-term requirements for special class and special school places and the more strategic and longer-term requirements on a national and local basis. The Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, will update the House in respect of the section 37A process. I would also like the House to note that engagement is ongoing between the Department and the Office of the Attorney General in respect of the legislative tools available to further expedite this process.

A number of initiatives have been put in place by my Department over the past two years to assist with the planning and co-ordination of special educational needs provision. These new initiatives are bearing fruit with 315 new special classes due to open for the 2022-23 school year, which will create more than 1,800 places for students. Two new special schools were established in Dublin in 2021. A new special school has been established in Cork in this school year and a new special school is being established in the 2022-23 school year in Cork. Following on from strategic engagement with the Spiritan Education Trust, a new special school will be established in the 2022-23 school year at the Templeogue College campus in Dublin, with the overall objective being to develop a modern, permanent provision for this school to enable it to cater for up to 150 pupils when completed. This will add very significant capacity for south Dublin area.

Furthermore, the Department is committed to planning for the future and all major building projects, such as new school buildings and significant extensions, must include space for special class provision as standard. Between 2018 and 2021, permanent accommodation for 292 special classes and additional capacity for 122 classrooms in 22 special schools was delivered. A further 700 projects are currently progressing under the Department's capital plan, which will deliver more than 1,300 new SEN classrooms and 200 replacement SEN classrooms to cater for approximately 7,800 SEN pupils in primary and post-primary education. Almost 100 of these projects are currently on-site, which will ultimately deliver classroom spaces for almost 1,000 additional SEN pupils. This investment is reflective of the broader and greater ambition that we hold for the sector. We will absolutely continue to prioritise investment in this vital and significant area. As such, I propose the Government's countermotion for consideration this evening.

I again acknowledge the exemplary work of many schools in the area of special education provision throughout the country. This notwithstanding, I also know from listening to and hearing from young people and families that more work must continue to be done to ensure that every child, including those with additional educational needs, receives timely access to every support he or she might need to reach his or her fullest potential. We must never lose sight of this goal and I look forward to continuing to work with everyone around the table, including all key stakeholders and interested parties, to ensure this the case. In this regard, I thank the Deputies for raising these important matters and I look forward to the debate.

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