Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 268: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she will proceed with the introduction of a system of weighted allocation of resources for children with special educational needs from September 2005; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8225/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Government took a decision in 1998 that has transformed the level of provision for pupils with special educational needs, including those with mild and borderline mild general learning disabilities. Pupils with such needs would be entitled to an automatic response to meet those needs and the allocation of resources to meet those needs no longer depended, as it had in the past, on the limited resources that were available to meet those needs. Instead, the response was based on the nature of the disability involved and once the required supporting professional assessments were made available, the resources were automatically allocated. It was this decision that gave rise to an enormous expansion in resourcing levels in schools.

In light of the reality that pupils in the high incidence disability categories of mild and borderline mild general learning disability and dyslexia are distributed throughout the education system, my Department, in consultation with educational interests, developed a general model of resource teacher allocation to schools to support students in these disability categories. This model, which was announced by my predecessor in 2004 and due to come into effect from September 2005, was designed to put in place a permanent resource in primary schools to cater for pupils in these categories. The model was constructed so that allocations would be based on pupil numbers, taking into account the differing needs of the most disadvantaged schools and the evidence that boys have greater difficulties than girls in this regard.

In light of the possible impact on small and rural schools, I have asked my Department to conduct a review of the general allocation model. The review will be completed in the coming weeks and its outcome will be announced in time for implementation for the next school year.