Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 448: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of special needs assistants assigned to schools (details supplied) in County Kildare; the number of these that will have their contracts renewed prior to the ending of the current school year; if she intends to put a more formal structure in place for SNAs given that many are investing their own funds in training and have built up valuable experience; and if she intends to introduce specific contracts. [23267/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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There are currently 308 special needs assistants (SNAs), employed in 80 primary schools in County Kildare on my Department's payroll. It is not possible to say how many of these SNAs will have their contracts renewed for the new school year. The situation in relation to the retention of SNAs by schools can vary from school to school depending on the needs of the individual children and whether or not the children are due to leave school at the end of this school year. Responsibility for the recruitment and employment of SNAs rests with the relevant school authorities and it is a matter for the school authorities to inform SNAs employed by them of the situation for the 2005 to 2006 school year. My Department is currently drafting sample contracts in consultation with management and union representatives. These will be made available to the management bodies as soon as possible.

My Department has recently issued a letter to schools who have surplus SNA staff which contained guidelines for schools in selecting staff that should be let go. The letter confirmed that the selection criteria for determining whose contract should be terminated will be on a last in, first out, LIFO, basis, subject to the contractual position pertaining in schools. This means that unless the most junior SNA in the school has a written child-specific contract that entitles her or him to remain in the school, her or his contract should be terminated on the basis that she or he is the most junior SNA in the school in terms of length of service. If however the school has operated on the basis of employing all SNAs on child specific contracts and offered such contracts to the SNAs, it is the SNA who is attached to the child who has been identified as no longer needing the services of an SNA that should be released. A copy of this letter has also been published on my Department's website www.education.ie.

My Department had been engaged in discussions with the trade union representing special needs assistants, SNAs, under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission, on a number of issues relating to the employment of SNAs, including the matters raised by the Deputy.

These discussions have now concluded. One of the proposals that has been accepted by both parties is to agree to enter into negotiations at an early date with a view to devising a suitable system for redeployment having regard to the complexities involved. It would be the objective that this process be finalised for the end of the next school year.

Applications for SNA support are now dealt with by the National Council for Special Education which processes all applications for support from schools and communicates the decisions directly to the schools. At this stage, the council has dealt with all new applications from schools for SNAs that will be required from the beginning of September 2005.

The Deputy will be aware that this Government has put in place an unprecedented level of support for children with special needs. Since 1998, the number of SNAs has increased from less than 300 to more than 6,000 nationally. In addition to this, more effective systems, such as the establishment of the National Council for Special Education, have been put in place to ensure that children get support as early as possible.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 449: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the policy in her Department for progression to second level schools for children with autism; the provision her Department has made now that some are in their final year of primary education and require places in September of this year. [23268/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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My Department already supports the education of individual students with autism in various second level schools throughout the country. Discussions are taking place with the management authorities of a small number of schools with a view to establishing second level provision for groups of children with autism who are now coming to a transition stage and are about to move from primary to second level. Organising such provision is a significant task of the National Council for Special Education.

The National Council for Special Education, NCSE has been established as an independent statutory body with responsibilities as set out in the National Council for Special Education (Establishment) Order 2003. With effect from 1 January 2005, the NCSE through local special educational needs organisers, SENOs, are processing resource applications for children with special educational needs. Where a pupil with special educational needs enrols in a post primary school, it is open to the school to apply to the local SENO for additional teaching support and/or special needs assistant support for the pupil.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 450: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if a second level school place rather than a place of care will be provided this September for a person (details supplied) in County Kildare and if so where. [23269/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I understand the pupil in question has been offered an educational placement in two special schools in County Kildare but that her parents would prefer if she went to a different special school, which has not accepted her enrolment application. Enrolment decisions are the responsibility of the board of management of each school. The Department has no role in processing applications for enrolment by schools. However, section 29 of the Education Act 1998 provides parents with an appeal process where a board of management of a school or a person acting on behalf of the board refuses enrolment to a student. Where a school refuses to enrol a pupil, the school is obliged to inform parents of their right under section 29 of the Education Act 1998 to appeal that decision to the Secretary General of my Department. Where an appeal under section 29 is upheld, the Secretary General of my Department may direct a school to enrol a pupil.

The local special educational needs organiser, SENO, can help parents to secure an appropriate placement for their child. Contact details of the relevant SENO are available on my Department's website. The National Educational Welfare Board, NEWB, is a further statutory agency which can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child. The NEWB can be contacted at National Educational Welfare Board, National Headquarters, 16-22 Green Street, Dublin 7 or by telephone at 01 8738700.