Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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247. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department is undergoing an investigation into allegations of children with autism being kept in isolation rooms for hours at a time; if he will consider the removal of isolation room; and his views on whether the reduction in resource teacher hours has contributed to the overuse of isolation rooms. [3637/14]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that the Board of Management of each school is responsible for the care and safety of all of the pupils in their school. The well-being and safety of children should be at the centre of all policy and practices in schools.

Many schools withdraw pupils occasionally from the main classroom for short periods of time in order to manage pupil behaviour or to provide care support and assistance with issues such as dressing, cleaning or medical supervision. Schools should supervise and support children who have been withdrawn from the classroom in such instances, such as pupils who are distressed or out of control, until they have recovered and are able to re-engage in the classroom.

Schools may seek advice from their local National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) psychologist, from their NCSE Special Educational Needs Organiser, or from the National Behavioural Support Services, as to how children with behavioural needs can best be supported in school.

My Department has recently published new Guidelines for Schools on Supporting Students with Behavioural, Emotional, and Social difficulties and training is available for schools in relation to the provision of support for children with special educational needs from the Special Education Support Services (SESS), who can, as part of their designated training modules, provide guidance for schools in relation to containment or management measures for difficult behaviour.

My Department has asked the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) to prepare Policy Advice on Educational Provision for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. In developing this policy advice, the NCSE will consult widely with parents, professionals and other stakeholders and interested parties while also conducting research in relation to this area. As part of the process to develop this policy advice, the NCSE will consider the issue of the use of withdrawal/isolation rooms in schools for children with autism.

Where a parent or any other person has concerns about the care or safety of a child they should report these concerns to the Board of Management of the school, or may report the matter as a child protection concern to the HSE or to the Department of Education and Skills.

I also wish to clarify for the Deputy that the number of Resource Teaching support posts being provided to schools has increased this year by an additional 455 posts, in line with my decision last June to authorise the NCSE to maintain the level of resource teaching allocations to be provided for students with special educational needs for the current school year to the 2012/13 levels. There are now over 5,700 Resource Teaching posts supporting pupils with low incidence special educational needs in schools, which is more than at any time in the past.