James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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We will shortly have the largest school in the midlands at St. Mary's in Edgeworthstown, County Longford. My concern has always been for the care and well-being of children. My genuine support for improvement of substandard facilities is well recognised across Longford-Westmeath. I have supported staff and services at every possible opportunity, even in the very difficult circumstances arising from Government and HSE cutbacks. Any curtailment of services at the school would be a major threat to the welfare of the community, and I understand the extreme anxiety caused by the notice that the school has received regarding the closure of one of the autism spectrum disorder, ASD, classes in September. The parents and teachers were so annoyed at this decision that they held a public meeting on Thursday, 29 May to outline their concerns. On the same day, I received a letter from the Minister of State, Deputy Ciarán Cannon, stating:

There are currently 3 children attending the Early intervention unit in Edgeworthstown and it is my understanding that those children will be leaving the unit at end of this school year. The NCSE has consulted with both the HSE and the local SENO to determine if there are any other children in this area who might require such early intervention support and have concluded that, for now, there are none.

A parent who lives in Edgeworthstown visited the school on 29 May. Her child was diagnosed with ASD the day before the formal report, which I understand is with the Department, was issued, on 15 June. Another set of parents who have a child in the ASD early intervention class announced publicly at the meeting that their second child had also been diagnosed with ASD and they wanted their child to attend the early intervention class in Edgeworthstown. Another set of parents who visited the school three weeks ago have two children diagnosed with ASD, one of whom receives home tuition but is still eligible to attend the early intervention class in September.

A parent wishes to enrol her child in the early intervention class from September. It had been her intention to enrol her child in a mainstream class, but she has now realised that the early intervention class would be more suitable for her. The child is not yet toilet trained and has feeding difficulties and mainstream schooling is not yet suitable for her education.

Following the closure, between the schools in Edgeworthstown and Killoe there will be 36 ASD places. If the closure goes ahead, there will only be two available places in Edgeworthstown and three in Killoe. However, the NCSE does not take into account the fact that parents may not want to enrol their children in Killoe, as they live in the Edgeworthstown area and want their children to be fully integrated in the community there. Also, it is approximately 20 km from Edgeworthstown to Killoe.

A demand for ASD classes has recurred in St. Mary's. It never went away, but the diagnosis process takes time. Autism is often referred to as the "hidden disability" because those on the autistic spectrum show no significant physical differences from their peers; rather, it is their behaviour that marks them out as being different. The number of children diagnosed with autism is rising. The current rate of autism in Ireland is 1:100.

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this issue as it gives me an opportunity to clarify to the House the position on the special class in the school in question. The Deputy will be aware that the Government is committed to ensuring all children with special educational needs, including those with autism, can have access to an education appropriate to their needs, preferably in school settings through the primary and post-primary school network. Such placements facilitate access to individualised education programmes which may draw from a range of appropriate educational interventions, delivered by fully qualified professional teachers, with the support of special needs assistants and the appropriate school curriculum.

The Deputy will also be aware that the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, is responsible, through its network of local special educational needs organisers, SENOs, for allocating resource teachers and special needs assistants to schools to support students with special educational needs, including autism. It is also its role to make appropriate arrangements to establish special classes in schools in communities where the need for such classes has been identified.

Children with autism can enrol in an early intervention class from the age of three years and, if they are assessed at a younger age, home tuition can be provided from the age of two and a half. Special classes within mainstream schools are intended for children who, by virtue of their level of special educational needs, cannot reasonably be educated in a mainstream class setting but who can still attend their local school in a special class with a lower pupil-teacher ratio of 6:1 and SNA support. The total number of special classes for children with special educational needs, including autism, in mainstream schools throughout the country at the end of 2013 was 737, of which 564 were in primary schools and 173 in post-primary schools. Some 74 are early intervention classes which have been established for younger children with autism.

The NCSE has advised my Department that there are 17 children in four special classes for autism in the school referred to by the Deputy. One of the four classes is an early intervention class in which children from the age of three years can be enrolled. From September, the children in the early intervention class will move up to the autism special classes in the school. On this basis, the early intervention class will be suppressed. The remaining three special classes are not full. There are, in fact, two special class places available.

While the NCSE is aware that children in the area are being assessed, there is no indication at this time that an early intervention class for children who have completed assessments will be required from September. The NCSE, through the local SENO, will continue to liaise with the HSE to determine if further special class provision is required. If additional provision is required, the NCSE will establish additional special classes to meet the need for such classes in the local area.

James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response. While appreciating that, in theory, the current enrolment does not warrant four classes, the level of need and support required has not been taken into account. In the light of the facts I have presented, I would appreciate it if the Minister of State reviewed the situation in Edgeworthstown because there is a conflict between what he has said and what the principal of the school has said. This was outlined to us at a public meeting on 29 May. I understand and have provided the facts that there are a number of children who have since come on board. Also, applications to the school are ongoing. It is always in June, July and August that the school receives new applications; perhaps, therefore, the Department has acted in haste. It is welcome that the Minister of State has said that if there is a need, the school will not lose the teacher and class in Edgeworthstown. Perhaps, in the light of the facts I have brought to the attention of the House, he will review the position as soon as possible. Parents and teachers tell me they can prove the preschool facility is viable. I, therefore, call for the post to be reinstated.

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for his contribution. To clarify, the early intervention class can only be reinstated on the basis that the SENO, the only person operating in the region with the expertise to determine the special needs requirements of each child in the area, in liaison and consultation with the HSE, determines there are sufficient children in the area who wish to attend the school and avail of an early intervention service. If it transpires between now and September that sufficient children have been identified and there is sufficient demand, the NCSE, as was always the case, will consider reopening the class. I do not believe anybody acted in haste. As of now, the SENO has yet to identify any child that will require such a service. That is not to say a need may not be established between now and September. If it is, the NCSE and the Department have committed unequivocally to meeting it.