Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Question 32: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the options available from her Department or its agencies for preschools in respect of children with autism or autistic spectrum disorder; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35308/08]

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The provision of pre-school facilities for children with intellectual disabilities is primarily a matter for the Department of Education and Science. That Department provides some pre-school provision for children with special educational needs through the visiting teacher service and, more recently, through the expansion of the home tuition scheme to provide funding for home programmes for pre-school children on the autistic spectrum. In addition, the Department of Education and Science funds a number of early intervention classes for children with autism, with these classes attached to mainstream schools.