Responding to the launch by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) of a review into special education, Dublin South West Sinn Féin TD, Seán Crowe, said the first major hurdle was to get the Minister for Education, Ruairí Quinn, to implement the key recommendations of the report.

Deputy Seán Crowe said:

“I would like to commend the NCSE for carrying out this ground breaking and comprehensive strategic review into special education.

“The fact that it is the first in 20 years speaks volumes. The findings contained in the publication of their report, Supporting Students with Special Educational Needs in Schools, cannot be left sitting on a ministerial shelf gathering dust and the first major hurdle will be to get Minister Ruairi Quinn to implement the report in full.

“One of the primary recommendations put forward by the NCSE is that the link between education allocations based on a category of disability, must be changed to one of an allocation based on the students actual need.

“This is absolutely essential if we are to improve the level of supports for children with special educational needs, particularly where the emphasis is on streaming and integrating students into mainstream education.

“In recent weeks I, and many of my colleagues, have been trying to deal with parents of children who have Autism and Down Syndrome, and whose education is clearly suffering because of the way home tuition and resource hours are currently allocated.

“We need a complete change of emphasis towards a system that prioritises the needs of the child instead of current allocation based on category of disability.

“I also share the NCSE’s concerns at the length of time many parents have to wait for a diagnosis to assess their child’s individual needs and learning capacity.

“It is essential we have in place a robust regulatory enrolment framework so as to ensure all children with special educational needs can access a school placement quickly.

“Parents should not have to go courts to get access to services or education supports for their children.

“Education Minister Ruairí Quinn needs to fully implement the recommendations in this timely report.”

ENDS