Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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199. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the additional resources and budget increase being considered for the NCSE to deal with the substantial increase in the needs of children that are being very negatively affected by school closures due to Covid-19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7639/20]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has been providing a range of online resources for parents and teachers to support home learning for children with special educational needs during the Covid 19 restrictions.

Supports provided include those relating to general learning and difficulties for pupils with special educational needs, Curriculum support, speech language and communication, occupational therapy support, guidance around behaviour, and learning and rresources on ‘Visiting Teachers Support’ for a teacher who teaches children with sensory impairment

Details of the full range of supports that the NCSE provides for teachers and parents is available at:

While additional provision has been made for online education over the school closure period, some other NCSE activities, such as school support, visits and the provision of professional development programmes for schools, have been required to be suspended.

The level of resources which will be required for the NCSE to provide supports for schools and for children with special educational needs, will be considered in the context of ongoing developments regarding educational provision over the over the period of the Covid 19 restrictions, and as part of the annual estimates process which consider budgetary requirements.