Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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121. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the steps he will take to ensure that all children will be eligible to participate in the free preschool year, in time for September 2015. [8000/15]

Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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I wish to ask the Minister the steps he will take to ensure children will be eligible to participate in the free preschool year in September 2015, including those with disabilities.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The early childhood care and education programme is a free and universal programme to which all children, including children with special needs, have access. The objective of the programme is to make early learning in a formal setting available to eligible children before they commence primary school. Participating child care services are, therefore, expected to provide age-appropriate activities to children within a particular age cohort.

Children born between 2 February 2011 and 30 June 2012 will qualify for the programme in September 2015 and children born between 2 February 2012 and 30 June 2013 will qualify in September 2016. All children have an opportunity to avail of the programme. However, some parents whose children were born in the months of July and August, who wish to start them in primary school when they reach four years of age, have to make a choice between enrolling their child in primary school or availing of the free preschool year. There are no exemptions for children who are below the eligibility age range.

The issue of access to the free preschool year for children with special needs was taken into account when the free preschool year was launched, and measures were introduced to make the programme more accessible for those children. The measures include an exemption from the upper age limit and permission to have the preschool year split over two years on a pro ratabasis, where it would be in the child's best interest. Parents could decide to send a child two days a week in year one and three days a week in year two.

Most children with special needs avail of the free preschool year in mainstream child care services. The Health Service Executive, HSE, does, where possible, assist children with special needs who may require additional support to enable them to avail of preschool services in mainstream settings. However, these supports are not provided in a nationally consistent way. My Department has been working with the Department of Health and the Department of Education and Skills to build better supports to facilitate children who have special needs. The aim is to develop an agreed framework for the provision of resources to support children with special needs in mainstream child care settings.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House

I have established a high level interdepartmental group to examine the issue of future investment in early childhood care and education, and child care for school-going children. As part of its work, the group will consider how best to make appropriate provision for children with special needs who are accessing mainstream child care services. I have asked the group to report to me by the summer.

Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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The Government has been dragging its heels over making the preschool year universally accessible. Supports for children with care needs while attending the free preschool year are still very much an issue. It is not acceptable that the Government has still failed after all this time to put in place something similar to the SNA provision system run by the National Council for Special Education.

I welcome the Minister's good intentions outlined in his reply to my question. However, the main issue at hand is the fact that there simply are not the proper facilities, equipment or even a high enough level of training in most crèches to deal with the needs of children with varying disabilities during a preschool year.

While Dublin may be in a better position in some instances to provide services to families, rural areas are seriously under-resourced in the area of special needs. What steps are being taken as of now to ensure children with special needs will not be discriminated against or treated differently?

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Having read out the answer I do not believe the Government is dragging its heels. It has made this service universally available to children in the eligible age category. It makes particular allowance for those with special needs through the mechanisms I have outlined, by allowing them to split the year over two years and by not having an upper age limit for children with special needs, because sometimes their education can benefit a little bit later.

Most children with special needs participate in the ECCE programme. This is based on the fact that a total of 94% of eligible children participate in the year, so it is clearly very popular. This leaves approximately 4,800 children in the age cohort not participating and not all of these children have disabilities. This is not a homogenous group and we do not have the definitive numbers for the subgroups. Some children go straight into junior infants rather than participating in ECCE, approximately 1,700 children participate in the Early Start programme run by the Department of Education and Skills in disadvantaged schools, some children with autism spectrum disorders participate in special autism preschools, some children with very complex disabilities attend special preschools, and each year approximately 900 children are home schooled.

Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister. Will the Minister give an outline of what exactly the interdepartmental group on the preschool year is being asked to do? What are its short and medium-term ambitions to resolve the issue of inadequate provision for children with special needs before term commences in September? Will he assure parents that all children will be provided for and will receive the same care and educational treatment as children without special needs come September? I have raised with the Minister previously the issue of children with autism. There are serious delays in diagnosis with a multidisciplinary team, and children are often waiting eight months for a diagnosis. Many parents find it extremely difficult or next to impossible to get their children into preschool. Has the Minister discussed this with the Minister for Health and is he looking into it?

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The interdepartmental group seeks to clarify the goals for public investment, including ensuring that services are of a high standard. It will review current investment in light of these goals to ensure any gaps and duplication are addressed and programmes are a good fit to achieve policy goals. The issue of workforce sustainability is also important in this regard. The group will analyse evidence and best practice here and abroad in order that it can identify the best way to deliver investment to realise these goals. It will identify and assess options for future investment, specifying the costs and benefits of each option. It will make recommendations for future investment.

The wait for a diagnosis of autism, or a diagnosis in other areas of special needs, is something that is being addressed through the HSE and its plan, and through the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, to ensure services are available based on the needs of the child rather than on a diagnosis. Through this needs service, a diagnosis may very well arise which will allow the service to be honed more particularly to the child's needs.