Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 414: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of special needs assistants assigned to each national school in County Kildare in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005; her plans for the expansion of the service in County Kildare national schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17803/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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There are 273.31 whole-time equivalent special needs assistants employed in 80 primary schools in County Kildare and paid salary on my Department's payroll. The corresponding details for previous years are as follows:

The Government has put in place an unprecedented level of support for children with special needs. Since 1998, the number of SNAs has increased from under 300 to nearly 6,000 nationally.

The Deputy may also be aware that the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, which became operational on 1 January 2005, now processes applications for special educational needs, SEN, supports. At this stage, the NCSE has dealt with all new applications from schools for SNA assistance that will be required from the beginning of September 2005. Therefore, there should be no reason a child enrolling in a school in September 2005 who needs SNA assistance does not have that assistance in place from his or her first day in school. Where it has been established that additional SNA posts are required, these posts continue to be allocated on an ongoing basis.