Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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159. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if free schoolbooks for primary age children are available for students using home tuition grants, many of whom do not have an appropriate school place for additional needs and who are doubly penalised without proper supports; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37380/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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As Minister for Education, I believe it is crucially important that children and young people are actively supported to access education in its fullest forms. This Government recognises that the cost of preparing children for school each September can be a cause of financial difficulty and worry for many Irish families. This is linked to ensuring that every child with special educational needs gets a suitable education which is a priority for the Department of Education.

The funding provided under Budget 2024 for the Primary Schoolbooks Scheme is to provide free school books to pupils in recognised primary and special schools. More than 555,000 pupils enrolled in approximately 3,230 primary schools, including over 130 special schools will continue to benefit from this scheme. Funding is provided directly to schools at a per capita rate based on validated September 2023 enrolment figures.

My Department’s Home Tuition Grant Schemes provide funding towards the provision of a compensatory educational service for children who, for a number of specific reasons, are unable to attend school. By its nature, it is intended to be a short-term intervention.

Home tuition is provided as an interim measure only for children for whom a placement in a recognised school is not currently available and should not be regarded as an optional alternative to a school placement. Aspects of the scheme differ, depending on the reason for the application.

The Department of Education operates four categories of home tuition:

1. Home tuition for children with special educational needs and on medical grounds. gov - Home Tuition ( )

2. Maternity-related absences gov - Home Tuition ( )

3. No School Place (NSP) Home Tuition Scheme gov - Home Tuition ( )

4. Children in Care (CIC) Home Tuition Scheme gov - Home Tuition ( )

In the 2023/2024 academic year, 9% of the overall home tuition applications received were for children seeking a special school or special class place. The Home Tuition Grant Scheme is an interim measure to provide for education until a suitable school place becomes available, at which point the home tuition grant is discontinued.

The remaining 91% of applications received were for pre-school children with autism or children who were already enrolled in a recognised schools who would benefit from the home tuition grant scheme as a one-time measure to compensate for a period of absence which occurred in the previous school year.

There are a variety of reasons why a child may be without a school place such as children moving school mid-year, family relocating, expulsion, children receiving a place further away than they can travel to. The Home Tuition Scheme is a short-term measure until a solution is put in place.

The Educational Welfare Service is part of Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) and operates under the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, a piece of legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation, and retention. The EWS is a statutory service and its primary role is to ensure that every child either attends school regularly or otherwise receives a certain minimum education and to ensure and secure every child’s entitlement to education.

The Educational Welfare Service can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school placement for their child. Referrals to the Educational Welfare Service may be made throughout the school year. Once a referral is made to the Educational Welfare Service in respect of a child or young person with no school place, it will remain an open case until such time as a school place is offered and accepted.

A referral for a child without a school place is prioritised by the Educational Welfare Service and an Educational Welfare Officer (EWO) is assigned immediately to support families who are in this situation.

Application forms for the home tuition scheme for children who are temporarily without a school place, who are without an offer of a school place and who are actively seeking a school placement in a recognised school, are available from the local Educational Welfare Officer (EWO) or the appointed social worker. The Educational Welfare Service can assist a family when applying for home tuition if the child is without a school placement. Home tutors are engaged by the parents/guardian of the child who is to receive tuition and the tutor has no contractual relationship with the Department of Education.

Schoolbooks Scheme funding would have issued to schools in respect of these students if they were enrolled in a school on 30 September 2023.

If a school has a concern about funding for additional pupils who have enrolled in the school since this time, there is an exceptional cases funding provision under the scheme.

This provision allows a school to request additional funding when a significant increase in enrolments has occurred and the school cannot meet the costs of the books from within the original funding allocation or from previous surplus funding. Further information on exceptional cases is outlined in Section 5.5 of the published guidance.

Schools that wish to apply for additional funding under the exceptional cases provision should email . As set out in the guidance certain considerations will apply and each application for funding will be considered on a case-by-case basis.