John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising the matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy McHugh, who is in London on Government business today.

It is the policy of the Department of Education and Skills that 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. In 2019, €1.9 billion is being invested in special education, almost one fifth of the overall education and training budget. Investment in the area of special education continues to be a priority, with the budget for 2020 also providing for an additional 1,064 special needs assistants and over 400 additional special education teacher posts throughout the country. The range of supports and services which are made available includes additional special educational support teaching, special needs assistant support, funding for the purchase of specialised equipment, services of the National Educational Psychological Service, NEPS, enhanced levels of capitation in special schools and special classes and additional teacher training.

The National Council for Special Education, NCSE, which is an independent statutory body, is responsible for organising and planning provision for children with special educational needs, including the establishment of special classes and special schools, in consultation with the relevant education partners and the Health Service Executive. An additional 1,050 specialised places have been provided this school year, with 167 new special classes being opened. This brings the total number of special class places to over 9,700, almost a trebling of the provision since 2011. Over 80% of these are autism-specific special class places. The number of special classes in mainstream schools has increased from 548 in 2011 to 1,621 for the 2019-20 school year.

Special classes offer a supportive learning environment to students who are unable to access the curriculum in a mainstream class, even with support, for most or all of their school day. Students enrolled in special classes should be included in mainstream classes to the greatest extent possible, in line with their abilities. Schools may apply to the NCSE to open a special class where a need has been identified in their area, for example, where a number of students have professional reports indicating they require the support of a special class.

Before approaching a particular school to request the establishment of a special class, SENOs take into account both present and future potential need within the area and must be satisfied that the class is sustainable and appropriately located. While it is not always possible to ensure that a special class placement will be available in the child's local school, the NCSE has informed the Department of Education and Skills that, in general, it is satisfied there are currently sufficient special class placements to meet existing demand.

The Department of Education and Skills does not currently have a policy supporting the establishment of special classes in fee-charging schools, as the Senator outlined. This is because the NCSE is required to satisfy itself that the class is both sustainable and available to all of pupils who may need special class placements in a particular area. As learning needs change over time, a student's enrolment in a special class should also be kept under continual review by the school. Where such a review indicates that the student's needs might be best addressed in a mainstream setting, the student should be supported in moving to a mainstream class in the school. A special class is, therefore, not a separate provision within a school, but forms part of the overall educational provision within the school, with interaction taking place between the two settings.

The Department of Education and Skills informs me it is satisfied that, based on the advice of the NCSE, schools in the free education system can continue to establish sufficient special classes to meet identified need.Regarding the specific matter raised by the Senator, I will bring the details back to the Minister. In an Irish context, there are two types of fee-paying schools. In my constituency, Kilkenny college was one of the largest fee-paying schools in the country until it became part of the free school system a few years ago. I do not want to resort to categorising people, but Bandon grammar school would traditionally have served the needs of members of the Church of Ireland community in west Cork and that part of the country. I understand there would be specific issues regarding access for children from the Church of Ireland tradition who may have special educational needs. It is a legitimate issue to raise.

In a broader sense, in respect of fee-paying schools, it is appropriate that the NCSE has to be satisfied that classes being provided are available to everybody. By their very nature, fee-paying schools are not available to everybody. There is, however, a specific question to be answered in this case. I will ask the Minister to respond directly.