Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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198. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of NEPS psychologists that are assigned to the schools in an area (details supplied); if psychologists assigned are based on school population; if the psychologists work on referrals during the school break; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38233/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I can inform the Deputy that my Department’s National Educational Psychological Service provides educational psychological support to all primary and post-primary schools. This involves direct support in the event of a critical incident, access to national and regional support and development work to build school capacity to support students, access to a NEPS psychologist for responses to queries arising, and access to individual pupil casework via a NEPS psychologist or through the Scheme for the Commissioning of Psychological Assessments (SCPA).

NEPS does not maintain waiting lists but in common with many other psychological services and best international practice, has adopted a consultative model of service. The focus is on empowering teachers to intervene effectively with pupils whose needs range from mild to severe and transient to enduring. Psychologists use a problem solving and solution oriented consultative approach to maximize positive outcomes for these pupils. NEPS encourages schools to use a continuum based assessment and intervention process whereby each school takes responsibility for initial assessment, educational planning and remedial intervention for pupils with learning, emotional or behavioural difficulties. Teachers may consult their NEPS psychologist should they need to at this stage in the process. Only in the event of a failure to make reasonable progress, in spite of the school's best efforts in consultation with NEPS, will the psychologist become involved with an individual child for intensive intervention or assessment.

This system allows psychologists to give early attention to urgent cases and also to help many more children indirectly than could be seen individually. It also ensures that children are not referred unnecessarily for psychological intervention.

In relation to the Deputy’s request for information regarding NEPS service to East Meath schools, I wish to advise that psychologists work within a regional and local office structure serving the needs of schools in their immediate vicinity. The East Meath area is part of the North East Region of NEPS which covers counties Cavan, Monaghan, Louth and Meath. There are ten schools in the East Meath area. Each of these schools has access to NEPS for Critical Incident Support, the NEPS Regional Support and Development Service and for response to queries arising. Eight of the schools have an assigned NEPS psychologist for a casework service and two, while awaiting the appointment of a NEPS psychologist, have access to the Scheme for the Commissioning of Psychological Assessments (SCPA).

NEPS psychologists are assigned schools based on a weighting process which takes into account school size, DEIS status, gender mix and geographical spread and equating roughly to a 5,000:1 pupil to psychologist ratio.

NEPS is a school-based psychological service and NEPS psychologists work collaboratively with teachers in their assigned schools using a consultative problem-solving and solution-oriented approach to maximize positive outcomes for students in the school setting. In general NEPS psychologists do not work directly in schools outside of term time. Psychologists, however, continue to work on a casework service, off-site, with a particular focus on report-writing at this time. NEPS continues to be available to support schools should they be needed, throughout the school holiday period.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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199. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of NEPS referrals made in the 2018-2019, 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years for an area (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38234/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I can inform the Deputy that my Department’s National Educational Psychological Service provides educational psychological support to all primary and post-primary schools. This involves direct support in the event of a critical incident, access to national and regional support and development work to build school capacity to support students, access to a NEPS psychologist for responses to queries arising, and access to individual pupil casework via a NEPS psychologist or through the Scheme for the Commissioning of Psychological Assessments (SCPA).

NEPS does not maintain waiting lists but in common with many other psychological services and best international practice, has adopted a consultative model of service. The focus is on empowering teachers to intervene effectively with pupils whose needs range from mild to severe and transient to enduring. Psychologists use a problem solving and solution oriented consultative approach to maximize positive outcomes for these pupils. NEPS encourages schools to use a continuum based assessment and intervention process whereby each school takes responsibility for initial assessment, educational planning and remedial intervention for pupils with learning, emotional or behavioural difficulties. Teachers may consult their NEPS psychologist should they need to at this stage in the process. Only in the event of a failure to make reasonable progress, in spite of the school's best efforts in consultation with NEPS, will the psychologist become involved with an individual child for intensive intervention or assessment.

This system allows psychologists to give early attention to urgent cases and also to help many more children indirectly than could be seen individually. It also ensures that children are not referred unnecessarily for psychological intervention.

In relation to the Deputy’s request for information regarding the number of requests for NEPS involvement made by schools in the East Meath area in the 2018-2019, 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years, this information is set out in the table attached. In addition to the casework service outlined in the attached, NEPS was also available to these schools for Critical Incident Support, the provision of a Regional Support and Development service and a response to queries, on request.