Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent Ireland Party) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister and the Minister of State on their roles and I look forward to working with them, but we are here again and it is no different than last year or the year before. We now have new people in charge of the Department but we are still looking for resources for special needs. The term "special needs" says it all. There is no doubt that gender and complex needs have been removed from the factors that set out allocations. There is a new modelling for the assessment. Twenty-five percent of the assessment for special needs relates to enrolment while 68.5% is based on test scores from pupils in second, fourth and six class.

The one that really beats me is that 6.5% is based on educational disadvantage and the address of pupils. Special needs can arise anywhere no matter what the address. Someone living in Dublin 4 can have special needs and someone living in Limerick can also have special needs. Why would this be part of a model for deciding where to get people to help with special needs? This discriminates against all rural schools. It discriminates against the most vulnerable people in this country whom we are trying to help.

I am a father and grandfather. If we can do anything to help our children, grandchildren or anyone in our area, we will do it. If these decisions are based on address, we are never going to get the proper funding put in place to help people with special needs. We will not get the resources or teachers because of the way these standards are done. The decision should be based on facts and the number of pupils in the school who need help, whether the school is large or small. Anyone who has a heart knows that is what has to be done. I have seen children go through years of school while waiting for assessments because the family does not have €1,700 to go and get an assessment. Money fixes everything. People can wait years if they go through the system. That discriminates against anyone seeking to have the same education as everyone else, as is their right. That is where the problem lies. We need to make sure the resources are given out equally.

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