LEGAL SYSTEM
The Education Act 1998
The preamble to the Education Act 1998 makes specific reference to provision for the education of persons with disabilities or special educational needs. A stated objective of the Act is "to give practical effect to the constitutional rights of children, including children who have a disability or other special educational needs."
Under the Education Act, schools are required to use their resources to ensure that the educational needs of students with disabilities or other special educational needs are identified and provided for. Boards of Management of schools are required to use the resources provided by the state to make reasonable provision and accommodation for students with disabilities or other special educational needs and are required to publish the policy of the school concerning admission to and participation by students with disabilities or other special educational needs.
Boards of Management of schools are also required to prepare and regularly review and update a School Plan which states the measures that the school proposes to take to achieve equality of access and participation in the school by students with disabilities or other special educational needs.
Under the Act, the Minister for Education and Science is to ensure that support services and a level and quality of education appropriate to their needs and abilities are made available to persons with disabilities or other special educational needs. The support services which the Minister can provide for schools and for students with special educational needs and their parents include assessment, psychological, guidance and counselling services; technical aid and equipment; adaptations to buildings to facilitate access; early childhood and continuing education; and transport. The Minister may make regulations relating to access to schools and centres for education by students with disabilities or other special educational needs.
For further information on the Education Act, please visit the website of the Department of Education and Science at http://www.education.ie
Equal Status Act 2000
The Equal Status Act 2000 promotes equality and prohibits types of discrimination, harassment and related behaviour. Discrimination on the ground of disability includes " a refusal or failure by the provider to do all that is reasonable to accommodate the needs of a person with a disability by providing special treatment or facilities, if without such special treatment or facilities it would be impossible or unduly difficult for the person to avail himself or herself of the service."
The Act states that "educational establishments" shall not discriminate in relation to
a. the admission or the terms or conditions of admission of a person as a student to the establishment
b. the access of a student to any course, facility or benefit provided by the establishment
c. any other term or condition of participation in the establishment by a student, or,
d. the expulsion of a student from the establishment or any other sanction against the student
Derogation from these provisions is allowable where compliance with them in relation to students with disabilities would make impossible, or seriously limit, the provision of services for other students.
Guidelines entitled Schools and the Equal Status Act have been jointly published by the Department of Education and Science and the Equality Authority. For further information on these Guidelines and on the Equal Status Act, please visit the website of the Equality Authority at http://www.equality.ie
Education (Welfare) Act 2002
This Act does not make specific reference to special education but the provisions of the Act apply to all students, including those with special educational needs. According to the Act, among the functions of the National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) "shall be to promote and foster, in recognised schools, an environment that encourages students to attend schools and participate fully in the life of the school" and "to ensure that each child attends a recognised school or otherwise receives a certain minimum education."
For further information on the Education (Welfare) Act, please visit the website of the Department of Education and Science at http://www.education.ie
For information on the National Educational Welfare Board, please visit http://www.newb.ie
Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004
The statutory framework for the education of children with special educational needs is contained in the EPSEN Act 2004. The purpose of the Act as set out in the preamble is
" to make further provision, having regard to the common good and in a manner that is informed by best international practice, for the education of people with special educational needs, to provide that the education of people with such needs shall, wherever possible, take place in an inclusive environment with those who do not have such needs, to provide that people with special educational needs shall have the same right to avail of, and benefit from, appropriate education as do their peers who do no have such needs, to assist children with special educational needs to leave school with the skills necessary to participate, to the level of their capacity in an inclusive way in the social and economic activities of society and to live independent and fulfilled lives, to provide for the greater involvement of parents of children with special educational needs in the education of their children, for those purposes to establish a body to be known as the National Council for Special Education and to define its functions, to confer certain functions on health boards in relation to the education of people with special educational needs, to enable certain decisions made in relation to the education of people with such needs to be the subject of an appeal to an appeals board and to provide for related matters."
The EPSEN Act promotes inclusive education for children with special educational needs; it outlines the duties and responsibilities of Boards of Management of schools and of principal teachers with regard to education provision for children with special educational needs; it deals with the development and implementation of education plans for children with assessed special educational needs; and it confers on parents a series of rights in relation to their child with special educational needs.
For further information on the EPSEN Act, please visit the website of the Department of Education and Science at http://www.education.ie or the website of the of the National Disability Authority (NDA) at www.nda.ie
An important feature of the EPSEN Act was the setting up of The National Council for Special Education (NCSE). The Council was formally established on 1 October 2005. The NCSE is charged with ensuring that the EPSEN Act is fully implemented within a period of no more than five years following its commencement in October 2005. The Act is being implemented on a phased basis and will be fully operational in 2009.
According to the Act, among the functions of the NCSE are the following;
- in consultation with schools and health boards to plan and co-ordinate the provision of education and support services for students with special educational needs;
- in consultation with schools to plan for the integration of education for students with special educational needs with education for students generally;
- to make available to the parents of students with special educational needs information in relation to the entitlements of their children;
- to ensure that the progress of students with special educational needs is monitored and that it is reviewed at regular intervals;
- to assess and review the resources required in relation to educational provision for students with special educational needs;
- to ensure that a continuum of special education provision is available as required in relation to each category of disability.
In addition, the Council has specific functions in relation to the core provisions of the EPSEN Act such as assessment and individual education plans.
For further information, see section on Identification of Special Needs
The NCSE is responsible for the provision of a range of educational services at local and national level for students with special educational needs. In particular, its network of Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs) co-ordinates special needs education provision at local level and arranges for the delivery of agreed educational services. They act as single points of contact for parents of students with special educational needs and have the clear and specific objective of co-ordinating the delivery of educational services to which students with special educational needs are entitled.
For further information on the National Council for Special Education, please visit its website at http://www.ncse.ie
Health Boards were replaced by the Health Services Executive in 2005.
See http://www.hse.ie for further information on the Health Services Executive.
The Disability Act 2005
The purpose of the Act is to enable provision to be made for the assessment of health and education needs of persons with disabilities; to enable Government Ministers to make provision for services to meet those needs; to provide for the preparation of plans by Ministers for the provision of services; to provide for appeals in the event of services not being provided…and to promote equality and social inclusion…
Please visit the website of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform (www.justice.ie) for further information on the Disability Act.
For further information on the identification and assessment procedures dictated by the Act, please move to the Section on Identification of Special Needs.
