Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 352: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of children who have no school place who obtain home tuition support from her Department while attempting to find a school place; the number of children who have obtained this support in each year over the past five years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26942/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy is aware that the home tuition scheme which provides funding to parents to provide education at home for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school was extended in recent years to facilitate tuition for children awaiting a suitable educational placement and also to provide early educational intervention for pre-school children with autism.

The Deputy will also be aware that the National Council for Special Education is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers, for the establishment of special classes for autism and for allocating resource teachers and special needs assistants to schools to support children with special needs. All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO. Parents may also contact their local SENO directly to discuss their child's special educational needs, using the contact details available on www.ncse.ie.

The information requested by the Deputy is not readily available in my Department for the period in question in the requested format. However, for the past two years, home tuition information has been maintained electronically and I have requested my Officials to send the relevant information to the Deputy directly.