Catherine Ardagh (Dublin South Central, Fianna Fail)
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516. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to review the recent SNA allocation decision for a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39672/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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This Government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective.

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is, in the first instance, the primary body responsible for the matter the Deputy has raised. I have forwarded this issue to them for their attention and direct reply.

Deputies are also welcome to raise such queries with the NCSE directly through their dedicated Oireachtas query line at oireachtasqueries@ncse.ie.

It is open to any school which feels like it has insufficient SNA support to meet the needs of its students to submit to the NCSE a request seeking a review of its allocation. Detailed information on the NCSE's SNA review process is published on the NCSE's website.

My department and the NCSE are committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.

Catherine Ardagh (Dublin South Central, Fianna Fail)
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517. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to provide details on the measures being taken to address the severe lack of therapy and psychological support at a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39673/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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While the provision of clinical therapy supports to children is the responsibility of the Health Service Executive (HSE), it is this government’s ambition, and as outlined in the Programme for Government, to extend therapy supports within the education system, over time, initially in special schools. This is not to replace HSE services but rather to compliment existing supports recognising that special schools support children with complex needs.

As outlined in my previous correspondence it is anticipated that the Education Therapy Service (ETS) will commence in some special schools at a later stage in the 2025/26 school year. Further roll out of the service will occur on a phased basis with a wider roll-out commencing in the 2026/27 school year.

The development and delivery of this service will be informed by detailed engagement with our colleagues in the HSE and stakeholders and will build on the NCSE’s work previously completed through the Educational Therapy Support Service (ETSS).

An ETS will develop an embedded therapy service which will ensure assigned therapist/s to each special school. In time, all schools will have the opportunity to access therapists for children and young people with the most complex needs, including those attending a special class. An embedded therapy service will ensure the development of robust relationships between therapist and teachers, allowing for co-design, joint problem solving and consistency. Evidence suggests that these factors lead to better outcomes for children and young people, teachers and therapists. An embedded therapy service also provides the opportunity for consistent collaboration with parents and other service providers such as CDNTs and Primary Care.

The ETS will work alongside existing services such as CDNT’s and NEPS to ensure all children and young people have the opportunity to access supports in the right place at the right time, maximising their potential and engagement in their education. This service is not a replacement for existing services, it will work in an integrated complimentary way with existing services.

The educational supports offered by therapists include In-school coaching and co-facilitation of interventions, strategies and resources across a multi-tiered system of support, including individualised support available for children and young people depending on their needs.

ETS therapists will function within the governance and line management structure of the NCSE therapy service. Clinical governance will be provided through therapy managers ensuring robust clinical supervision and supporting therapists to deliver a model based on evidence, an agreed scope of practice and appropriate competency.

It is my ambition that the work of my department and that of my government colleagues will develop and enhance therapeutic supports in the education system. However, at this time the provision of clinical therapy supports from CDNTs and any changes to therapy allocations is the responsibility of the HSE local CDNT management.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides educational psychological support to all primary, post-primary, and special schools. NEPS provides all schools with: psychological support in the event of a critical incident, a casework service for individual children where there is a need for intensive consultation and assessment via a NEPS psychologist or through the Scheme for the Commissioning of Psychological Assessments (SCPA), the School Staff Support and Development Service, to build school capability to provide a comprehensive continuum of support in schools, ongoing access to advice and support for schools, and an advisory service to schools where a psychologist is not available due to a vacancy.

I have made enquiries and can confirm that the school mentioned has an assigned psychologist.

My department is making every effort to recruit additional educational psychologists. Since January 2023, NEPS has supported bursaries for Trainee Educational Psychologists who are enrolled in the University College Dublin Professional Doctorate in Educational Psychology and Mary Immaculate College Limerick’s Professional Doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology. This has also been extended to students enrolled in Maynooth Universities professional doctorate in educational psychology.

Those in receipt of a bursary commit to joining NEPS upon graduation. There are over 70 Trainee Educational Psychologists in receipt of a bursary who are expected to join NEPS upon graduation.

The Public Appointments Service recently advertised a recruitment campaign for Educational Psychologists recently and successful candidates should be appointed shortly.