Tom Neville (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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82. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his views on a matter (details supplied) regarding a school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48462/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that DES Circular 0013/2017 for primary schools and 0014/2017 for post primary schools were published on 7th March 2017.

These Circulars set out the details of the new model for allocating special education teachers to schools.

The revised allocation process replaces 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 new Special Education Teaching allocation provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on each school’s educational profile.

Under the new allocation model, schools have been provided with a total allocation for special education needs support based on their school profile.

The provision of a profiled allocation is designed to give a fairer allocation for each school which recognises that all schools need an allocation for special needs support, but which provides a graduated allocation which takes into account the actual level of need in each school.

I wish to advise the Deputy that the school referred to in his question received an allocation of 42.05 hours special education teaching support, based on its school profile and an enrolment of 90 pupils at the time that the school profile developed. This is a substantial allocation of hours for a school of this size.

Whereas the profiled allocation had indicated a need of 40 hours for this school, based on its school profile and size, and relative to the profiled needs of all other schools, the school was allocated 42.05 hours, which was equivalent to the allocation the school received in 2016/17.

There has therefore been no reduction to the allocation of special educational needs teaching support for this school.

Under the new allocation model schools are frontloaded with resources, based on each school’s profile, to provide supports immediately to those pupils who need it without delay. This reduces the administrative burden on schools as schools no longer have to complete an application process annually and apply for newly enrolled pupils who require resource hours. Children who need support can have that support provided immediately rather than having to wait for a diagnosis.

Schools will therefore no longer have to make applications, for newly enrolled pupils for whom resource teaching hours may have been provided under the old model, or for pupils who have received a new diagnosis, as schools will now receive a single allocation for all of their special education teaching needs, based on their school size and profile.

It should be noted that this is a brand new model of allocation and is not comparable to the existing model. By using a broad range of attainment and socio-economic criteria, it is expected that generally, a school’s profile will remain relatively constant from year to year. Each year, some students with additional teaching needs will leave and others will enrol, broadly balancing the school profile. Resources allocated under this model will not normally be adjusted between allocations.

Both my Department and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) are committed to ensuring all schools are treated equally and fairly in the manner in which their school profiles have been calculated.

Accordingly, a number of review processes have been put in place to support schools.

In March of this year, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) published details of an appeal process for schools.

Schools were advised that this appeal would consider circumstances where schools considered that their school profile was calculated incorrectly, using the data set out in DES Circulars 0013 and 0014 2017. An appeal could be submitted for a review of the information used and of the calculation of the allocation.

Schools who wished to submit an appeal on this basis were asked to do so by March 31st 2017. These appeals have been processed and this appeal process has now concluded.

A second process has been put in place to address circumstances where the school profile significantly changed following the allocation process e.g. a developing school where the net enrolment numbers significantly increased.

The criteria for qualification for mainstream school developing school posts are set out in DES Circular 17/2017 (Primary School Staffing Schedule) and DES 10,11,12/2017 (Post Primary School Staffing Schedule).

Schools who qualified of additional mainstream developing school posts in accordance with these criteria also qualified for additional Special Education Teaching Allocations to take account of this developing status.

Schools were also advised that it acknowledged that there are some circumstances, which may arise in schools, which fall outside the appeals process, or allocations for developing school status.

These relate to exceptional or emergency circumstances which could not have been anticipated e.g. where the school profile changes very significantly, or where other exceptional circumstances have arisen in a school and which may require a review of schools capacity to provide additional teaching support for all pupils who need it in the school, or of their utilisation of their allocations.

The NCSE has now published details of how schools can seek a review of their allocations, including the utilisation of their allocations, in circumstances where a school considers that very exceptional circumstances have arisen subsequent to the development of the profile.

Should a school consider they fulfil the criteria for a review on the grounds of exceptional circumstances, they may request such a review at:

Finally, with regards to mainstream teaching posts, the criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts is published annually on my Departments website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The staffing schedule also includes an appeals mechanism for schools to submit an appeal under certain criteria to an independent Appeals Board.

The staffing schedule operates in a clear and transparent manner and treats all similar types of schools equally irrespective of location.

The Primary Staffing Appeals Board meets three times per year. The third and final meeting for the 2017/18 school year took place in October, 2017.

The school referred to by the Deputy submitted an application for consideration by the Appeals Board at its June 2017 meeting under the class size criterion. The appeal was refused by the Appeals Board on the basis that the grounds of your appeal did not warrant the allocation of an additional post for the 2017/18 school year.

The Primary Staffing Appeals Board operates independently of my Department and its decision is final.