Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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498. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if a person (details supplied) in Dublin 22 will be provided with a place at a school that meets that person's special needs. [42364/15]

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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499. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide sufficient resources to a school (details supplied) in County Dublin to ensure that it can cater for all the children with special needs who are on its waiting list for a placement in 2016. [42365/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 498 and 499 together.

I wish to advise the Deputy that the policy of my Department is that children with special educational needs, including children with autism, should be included, where possible and appropriate, in mainstream school placements with additional supports provided. In circumstances where children with special educational need require more specialised interventions, special school or special class places are also available.

Children with autism over the age of four may be eligible for home tuition if a school placement is not available for them.

The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from primary and post primary schools for special educational needs supports, including the establishment of special classes in various geographical areas as required. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support.

SENOs engage with schools annually in order to plan for, and to open, new special classes each year, in order to ensure there are sufficient special class placements available at primary and post primary school level to meet demand in a given area. All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO. Parents are encouraged to liaise with the local SENO to discuss placement options for their child.

The NCSE will continue to monitor and review the requirement for special class places in particular areas and has capacity to establish such new special classes, where necessary, subject to the willingness of schools to open classes. Where a school opens a special class the NCSE will allocate supports to the class to meet the educational and care needs of the students enrolled.

In addition to the mainstream educational provision provided for, there are over 1,000 special classes throughout the country at primary and post primary level. Each special class for autism at post-primary level has a 6:1.5 pupil teacher ratio.

The NCSE has advised that the school referred to by the Deputy opened an ASD class in September 2015. There are a number of vacancies in this class which will be filled in September 2016. The NCSE will continue to liaise with the parent of the child referred to by the Deputy in the context of their application for a placement in this school.