Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 721: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the percentage of primary and secondary schools covered by the National Educational Psychological Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28969/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware 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). 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 and paid for by NEPS.

During the 2007/08 academic year the percentage of schools to which a NEPS psychologist was assigned amounted to 54.4% of Primary and 79% of Post-Primary schools (84% when service from the City & County Dublin VEC Psychological service is factored in).

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 722: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of psychological assessments carried out by the National Educational Psychological Service in the years 2000 to date in 2008; the number of assessments carried out by the scheme for commissioning psychological assessment during the same period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28970/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware 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). 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 and paid for by NEPS. The SCPA was first put in operation for the 2001/02 academic year. Based on payment details the following number of assessments have been undertaken in schools to date:

In common with many other psychological services, NEPS operates a staged model of service to schools, whereby an initial referral usually leads to a consultation and provision of advice to teachers and parents on appropriate teaching and management strategies. Progress is kept under review and only those children who fail to respond to these interventions will need to see a psychologist. This allows the psychologists to offer early appointments to children who are in urgent need of support and early advice to teachers in respect to those children whose needs are perhaps less pressing but who still need additional help in school. The following relates to the number of named pupils referred to NEPS psychologists in the period, not all referrals involved full cognitive IQ assessments:

The 2007/08 figures are currently being updated by NEPS psychologists and do not represent the full total for that year. Neither do the figures include a count of the number of pupil applications processed by NEPS psychologists under the Reasonable Accommodation for Certificate Examinations (RACE) programme on behalf of the State Examinations Commission — which in 2006/07 amounted to 2,798 individuals.

In addition it is estimated that NEPS psychologists give consultations, advice and assistance to teachers and school authorities in respect of an additional 5,000 unnamed pupils per annum.