Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 554: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her Department is responsible for determining the number of SENOs to be employed here; if so, if her Department has a function in determining the number of SENOs allocated to each administrative area; the basis on which SENO staff are allocated to each area; if the level of need or population figures for each area are taken into account when allocating SENO staff; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33142/06]

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 555: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she will increase the overall allocation of SENO staff positions to the NCSE in line with the population increase indicated in the Census 20006 Preliminary Report; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33143/06]

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 556: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her attention has been drawn to any under staffing of SENOs here; the maximum number of cases each SENO is intended to, or able to take on at a given time; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33144/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 554 to 556, inclusive, together.

I wish to advise the Deputy that the number of special educational needs organisers (SENOs) that may be employed by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is subject to the consent of the Minister for Education and Science and the Minister for Finance under Section 25(1) of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act, 2004. The deployment of SENOs throughout the State is a matter for the NCSE, subject to overall approved staffing limits.

As the Deputy will be aware there are more than 70 Special Education Needs Organisers, or SENOs, employed by the NCSE. They are deployed on a nationwide basis, with each SENO having responsibility for the primary and second level schools in a particular area. The establishment of the SENO service has received very positive feedback.

Placing organisers in the locality enables them to work with the parents and the schools in a customer friendly way to ensure that children can get access to extra supports as quickly as possible. I am committed to supporting the SENO service in the excellent work that it is doing and will keep the staffing needs of the service under review in the context of other developments in the special education area.