Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 110: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if he will reverse the decision to defer the implementation of the Education for People with Special Educational Needs Act 2004. [38212/08]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 111: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the aspects of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004 that have been deferred and will not implemented by the target date of 2010 as per his speech on budget 2009; when the Act will be fully implemented; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38016/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 110 and 111 together.

As the Deputies will be aware, a significant number of sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act, 2004 have been commenced, principally those establishing the National Council for Special Education and those promoting an inclusive approach to the education of children with special educational needs. Specifically, the following sections have been commenced — 1, 2, 14(1)(a), 14(1)(c), 14(2) to 14(4), 19 to 37, 40 to 53.

The sections of the EPSEN Act that have been deferred are those mainly concerned with the assessment of need process, preparation and review of individual education plans and the associated appeals provisions in relation to these areas. A small number of sections refer to interaction between the NCSE and the health services. The full list of deferred sections is — 3 to 13, 14(1)(b), 14(1)(d), 14(1)(e), 14(1)(f), 15 to 18, 38 and 39.

As has been outlined previously, it is not possible to commence the EPSEN Act incrementally by age cohort, therefore the provisions of the Act especially regarding assessments and individual education plans will have to be commenced for all children at the same time. This means that the necessary training arrangements, personnel and systems have to be in place at the time of commencement.

As required under the Act, the NCSE provided a report making recommendations regarding the implementation of EPSEN which suggested additional investment over a period of years of up to €235m per annum across the education and health sectors. Having considered the NCSE report, and consulted with the education partners, the Department of Health and Children and the HSE, my Department identified a range of options for the implementation of EPSEN. It is not possible to give exact figures regarding cost as the specific amount of money required to support implementation would depend on the options chosen and the timeframe for the implementation of these options. However, my Department's opinion is that the level of investment required would be greater than that envisaged in the NCSE report.

In the light of the current financial circumstances, it is therefore not possible to proceed with implementation in 2010 as originally envisaged. However, the Government will keep the matter under review and is committed to the full implementation of EPSEN at the earliest possible date.

I want to take this opportunity to emphasise that children with special educational needs will continue to receive an education appropriate to their needs. I intend to build on the progress that has been achieved in recent years which has seen a huge increase in resources for special needs. The NCSE will continue to support schools, parents and children and teachers and special needs assistants will continue to be deployed to schools to meet children's needs.

Furthermore, as announced on Budget day, an additional €20m has been provided — €10m for education services and €10m for health services — to strengthen and enhance services and continue the preparation for the full implementation of the Act at a later date.

The additional funding being allocated to my Department will provide for an expansion of the National Educational Psychological service so that all schools in the country will be covered by the service. The additional funding available to NEPS, which represents a 33% increase over the 2008 allocation, will facilitate the recruitment of up to 50 further psychologists. It is envisaged that this will bring the number of NEPS psychologists by the end of 2009 above the proposed 200 incorporated in the Programme for Government.

This investment will significantly enhance the capacity of our educational psychologists to directly support schools in the development and delivery of appropriate interventions for children with special educational needs.

Additional funding is also being provided to the National Council for Special Education in 2009 to increase the Council's capacity in the move towards the full implementation of EPSEN. The additional funding will enable the Council to continue to improve, plan and co-ordinate the delivery of services for children with special needs.

I have also provided for further investment in teacher training in this area. This will ensure that teachers are provided with opportunities to access continuing professional development so that the learning and teaching needs of all pupils with Special Educational Needs continue to be met. The provision of high quality training ensures that pupils learning opportunities are enriched and learning outcomes are optimised.

An integrated approach is being adopted by the education and health sectors to target these additional resources to the areas of greatest need. Progress in both sectors will be kept under review by the Office for Disability & Mental Health and the Cross-Sectoral Team during 2009.