Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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436. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he has received correspondence written on behalf of a person (details supplied); the reason requested supports for the person to whom this correspondence refers were refused; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25455/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I can confirm to the Deputy that my Department has received correspondence from the Solicitors referred to in this question, in relation to the child also referred to in this question, and can advise that a response issued from my Department to this correspondence on 12th September, 2016.

The National Council for Special Education, which is an independent statutory agency, is responsible, through its network of locally based Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for the allocation of Special Educational Needs supports, including Special Needs Astsistant (SNA) to schools for students with special educational needs arising from a disability.

Responsibility for deciding on the quantum of special educational needs supports and resources to be allocated to schools to support individual pupils with special educational needs, rests with the NCSE.

The NCSE allocates SNA support to schools in accordance with the criteria set out in my Department's Circular 0030/2014. In making allocations to schools, the NCSE will take into account the assessed individual needs of all children with identified needs in the school.

The NCSE has advised that an allocation of SNA support has been made to the school concerned for the 2016/17 school year and that this allocation includes provision for access to SNA support to be provided for the child referred to in this question. Support has therefore not been refused for this child.

It should also be noted that SNA allocations are not made to individual children, but are made to schools to support the care needs of children with assessed special educational needs in the school.

Once an allocation of support has been made to a school, it is a matter for the school authorities to manage and utilise this support to provide for the care needs of qualifying children in the school.