Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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844. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason a person (details supplied) in Dublin 11 has been refused a full-time special needs assistant despite the repeated recommendation of professionals who have assessed their needs; if she will review the matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41504/14]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating a quantum of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support for each school taking into account the assessed care needs of children qualifying for SNA support enrolled in the school. Where children have significant care needs whereby they may need additional support to be able to attend school, the NCSE may make an allocation of SNA support to the school to assist that child.

The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. The criteria by which SNA support is allocated to pupils is set out in my Department's Circular 0030/2014, which issued to schools in April 2014 and which is available on my Department's website at www.education.ie.

The Circular also sets out the role which professional reports play in supporting the SNA scheme. While professional reports play a valuable role in identifying the needs of a child, responsibility for deciding on the quantum of educational supports to be provided to schools rests with the National Council for Special Education, in accordance with my Department's policy.

In considering applications for SNA supports for individual pupils, the SENOs take account of the pupils' needs and consider the resources available to the school to identify whether additionality is needed or whether the school might reasonably be expected to meet the needs of the pupils from its current level of resources.

The deployment of SNAs within schools is a matter for the individual Principal/Board of Management. SNAs should be deployed by the school in a manner which best meets the care support requirements of the children enrolled in the school for whom SNA support has been allocated. It is a matter for schools to allocate support as required, and on the basis of individual need, which allows schools flexibility in how the SNA support is utilised.

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.

Schools who wish to apply for additional SNA support to support children with care needs in their schools may make such an application to the NCSE. Schools who wish to appeal the level of SNA allocation which has been made to them may do so via the appeals process which is set out at www.ncse.ie.