Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 200: To ask the Minister for Health and Children when an educational assessment will be undertaken for a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16544/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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As the Deputy may be aware, Part 2 of the Disability Act 2005, which commenced on June 1 2007 for children under 5 provides people with disabilities with an entitlement to:

An independent Assessment of health and education needs

A statement of the services (Service Statement) which it is proposed to provide, which will be prepared by a Liaison Officer

Pursue a complaint if there is a failure to provide these entitlements

Make an appeal through an independent appeals office against a recommendation of complaints officer or the non implementation of recommendation of complaints officer (by HSE or education provider).

This prioritisation reflects the importance of intervention early in life, which can have a significant impact on the disabling effects of a condition or impairment. Part 2 will be commenced in respect of children aged 5-18 in tandem with the implementation of the EPSEN Act. The statutory requirements of Part 2 of the Disability Act will be extended to adults as soon as possible but no later than 2011.

If a special educational need is identified as a result of the assessment of a child under the Disability Act, that aspect of the assessment must be referred to the National Council for Special Education where the child is not yet attending school or to the Principal of his or her school for the purposes of an assessment under the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act, 2004. The EPSEN Act will be implemented over a five year timeframe that commenced on 1 October 2005 with all sections of the Act having commenced by 1 October 2010. In preparation for its implementation, the Department of Education and Science has informed the Department of Health and Children that it intends putting systems in place on an administrative basis in the interim so that the requirements of the Act can be delivered. This means that in practice education services will be delivered on an administrative basis initially and are of course, a matter for the Minister of Education and Science.