Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----in September and I hope that will ease the pressure for parents and children in the area.

Senator Warfield tabled the amendment and I thank him for his indulgence in sharing this good news. I will now deal specifically with his amendment. While I understand the amendment, I have to put out a number of issues around it. As the Senator mentioned, appropriate educational provision for children with additional needs is absolutely critical and is something to which the Government is committed. It is not, unfortunately, the function of the Department or the NCSE to provide resources around speech and language therapists and occupational therapists, as contained in the amendment. Those resources are under the remits of other Departments and State agencies.

The other amendments proposed by Senator Warfield relate to the core functions and role of the NCSE and its staff, in particular special educational needs organisers, SENOs. Most of the amendments relate to the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs, EPSEN, Act 2004. The Senators will be aware that a review of the Act is ongoing. Given that the legislation is urgent and needs to be progressed so quickly, I suggest that we need more time and space to consider the Senator's amendment. I also suggest that the current review of the EPSEN Act is the way to input his contribution to that. There simply is not the time to adequately consider the impact and potential consequences of the amendment he has proposed. There are also some phrases used in the text of the amendment that may need to be clarified as well, such as the references to other relevant organisations providing resources to schools and how SNA and adequate special education teacher supports should be generally defined. I regret therefore that I cannot accept this amendment, but I commit to considering the matter, and the other matters raised, further as part of the broader review of the EPSEN Act.

The Senator will be aware that the majority, although not all, of the provisions in EPSEN Act were commenced in 2004. The Act placed the NCSE on a statutory footing. It provides for the education of children under 18 years of age who have special educational needs. It has been in place for the past 18 years and is in need of urgent review. The Senator can, if he wishes, make a submission to the Department outlining his views. Any Member of the Oireachtas can have an input into that process. Obviously, as we have done in the case of the Senator's amendment, we will give serious consideration to all submissions made.

It is important that the legislation reflects current best practice, both nationally and internationally, and that it facilitates the best possible education and outcome for children with special educational needs. The consultation process is wide-ranging. It is due to be completed in the first quarter of 2023, so Members have a bit of time. Depending on the outcome of the review, it is expected that the Act will need to be updated and revised. Any proposed changes will need to come before both Houses. It is critically important that we have an legislation that we can commence and implement in full. There is no point in only certain provisions being capable of being commenced. In the context of the EPSEN Act, there were financial reasons as to why certain provisions could not be commenced. We want to ensure that the latter does not happen on this occasion, but I need the width and breadth of stakeholder consultation and submissions in respect of what we are doing.

I thank the Senator for tabling the amendment.