James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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313. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the types of education schemes that are available to young persons with learning disabilities and mental health issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34408/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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This Government is committed to ensuring that all children, including those with learning disabilities and/or mental health issues, can have access to an education appropriate to their needs, preferably in school settings through the primary and post primary school network.

My Department provides for a continuum of special education provision to be made available, so that regardless of the level of need of the child, educational provision can be made for them.

The policy of my Department is that children should be included in mainstream placements with additional supports provided where necessary.  The extent of supports required for any child in a particular class setting or school will depend on their individual learning needs and the extent of care needs that they may have.  In circumstances where children with special educational needs cannot be accommodated in mainstream education, they may be enrolled in special classes or special schools where more intensive and supportive interventions are provided.

Funding for special education provision this year will amount to some €1.68 billion and includes provision for:

- Over 13,400 Special Education Teaching posts in mainstream primary and post primary schools for the 2017/2018 school year, to provide additional teaching support to pupils with special educational needs.

- 13,990 Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) which will be available for allocation to primary, post primary and special schools for the new school year; this is 975 more posts, or a 7% increase, in the number of posts over which were available last year.

- Over 1,100 teachers in 125 special schools, including education provision in HSE Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMHS) Units.

- Almost 1,300 special classes which includes 160 new Special Classes sanctioned for the 2017/18 school year; this compares to 548 special classes in 2011.

- Enhanced capitation grants for special schools and special classes attached to mainstream primary and post primary schools.

- Teacher training and continuing professional development in the area of special education through the Special Education Support Service (SESS).

- Special school transport arrangements.

- Assistive technology/Specialised equipment.

- Special Arrangements for State Examinations.

From September 2017, a new Special Education Teaching allocation process will be introduced, replacing the generalised allocation process at primary and post primary school level for learning support and high incidence special educational needs, and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) allocation process which provided additional resource teaching supports to schools, to support pupils assessed as having Low Incidence disabilities.  The aim of this new model is to deliver better outcomes for children with special educational needs.

Pupils under the new allocation model will be identified by schools for additional teaching support in accordance with the Continuum of Support Guidelines, and the Guidelines which accompany my Department’s Circulars 0013/2017 and 0014/2017.  Teachers and School Principals will use their professional judgement in applying the principles and practices set out in the Continuum of Support Guidelines: .

The purpose of my Department’s Home Tuition Grant Scheme is to provide funding towards the provision of a compensatory educational service for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school.  The scheme also provides a compensatory educational service for children with special educational needs seeking an educational placement. Provision is also made for early intervention for children with autism.

My Department adopts a holistic and integrated approach to supporting the work of schools in promoting positive mental health and wellbeing.  The process spans the curriculum in schools, whole school ethos, quality of teaching, learning and assessment, student support and pastoral care and the provision of professional support for teachers.  It also involves other supports such as educational psychological services and the interface with other agencies, both nationally and locally.

Professional development services are provided by my Department to support teachers in addressing and dealing with mental health issues. These services provide support across a continuum: from whole-school and classroom level, to support for some children and support for a few children.  Continuing professional development is provided through:

- The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) which provides guidance for schools in managing and responding to critical incidents; and training in the delivery by teachers of programmes, including the Incredible Years programme, which aims to prevent and treat young children's behaviour problems and promote their social, emotional, and academic competence

- The Professional Development Service for Teachers provides professional development support to teachers and schools to develop and promote student health and wellbeing, including mental health, in the context of a positive health promoting school environment.  In 2016, there were 8,535 CPD engagements with teachers in this area through seminars, workshops and in school support.

- The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) Regional Support Service will provide advice and support to schools on the education and inclusion of students with special educational needs, providing in-school support for support teachers and continuing professional development for teachers. It will also enhance the multi-disciplinary capacity of the education system through providing access to expert knowledge in areas such as autism, speech and language and challenging behavior.

Supports are also provided through the Association of Teachers’ Education Centres in Ireland (ATECI) summer courses, the Irish Primary Principals Network (IPPN), the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD) and the Centre for School Leadership.

A key theme of my Department’s 2017 Action Plan for Education is the support of wellbeing initiatives to ensure that mental resilience and personal wellbeing are integral parts of the education and training system. Specifically, the Plan commits to the commencement of the roll-out of the Friends for Life programme and the Incredible Years Classroom Management programme to teachers in all DEIS schools.  NEPS will deliver both programmes commencing in the autumn.

It is planned that during the coming academic year, some 40 Friends programmes will be organised involving some 1,000 primary and post-primary teachers and 50 Incredible Years programmes will be offered to some 1,000 primary school teachers at the commencement of a three year roll-out of the training.