Jim O'Keeffe (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 213: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her attention has been drawn to concerns that many educational psychologists are no longer available to do work under the scheme for the commissioning of psychological assessments due to the fact that the rate set for assessments in 2001 has not been increased, despite inflation and the cost of new tests; if her attention has further been drawn to the fact that many psychologists on the panel will not take on behavioural difficulty cases, as they involve such an enormous number of hours; and if she has proposals to confront the situation, in order that the SCPA scheme can operate fully and effectively. [10920/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that all primary and post primary schools have access to psychological assessments either directly through the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) or through the Scheme for Commissioning Psychological Assessments (SCPA), full details of which are available on my Department's website. Schools that do not currently have NEPS psychologists assigned to them may avail of the SCPA, whereby the school can have an assessment carried out by a member of the panel of private psychologists approved by NEPS, and NEPS will pay the psychologist the fees for this assessment directly. The prioritisation of urgent cases for assessment is a matter for the school principal in the first instance.

In addition NEPS provides assistance to all schools and school communities that experience critical incidents, regardless of whether or not they have a NEPS psychologist assigned to them. Also, in relation to all schools, NEPS processes applications for Reasonable Accommodation in Certificate Examinations and responds to queries in relation to individual children from other sections of my Department and from the specialist agencies.

The SCPA was established, pending the expansion to all schools of the service provided by NEPS psychologists, specifically to undertake assessments with individual children and young people. Schools are allowed annual access to the scheme at a level commensurate with 2% of school enrolment. A panel of private psychologists was established and has been refreshed annually and currently has 149 psychologists listed. A number of applicants for inclusion on the panel is currently being considered within NEPS. Since 2001 over 20,000 assessments have been commissioned under the scheme at a cost of some €6.8m. In 2006 some 4,250 assessments were provided in this regard and to date in 2007 almost 800 assessments have been billed to NEPS, which is up to par with the same period last year. NEPS has reviewed the operation of the scheme and schools generally have expressed a high level of satisfaction with it. The scheme does allow for the cognitive assessment and appraisal of the learning and attainments of a child with emotional/behavioural difficulties. Normally other agencies would be expected to be involved in severe cases of this nature. Questions have been raised in relation to the assessment fee allowed under SCPA and the matter is currently being considered within my Department.

In the wider context I have recently been pleased to announce an increase of 31 posts in 2007 in NEPS psychologist staffing. My Department is currently in discussions with the Public Appointments Service in an effort to recruit these individuals as soon as possible in this regard. It is envisaged that these appointments will allow for further expansion of coverage by NEPS psychologists across all regions. Additionally under the Towards 2016 Agreement commitments I have further announced that NEPS psychologist numbers shall expand by a further 35 posts in the following two years.