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.
Financing
Special schools and mainstream primary and post-primary schools are generally funded in the same manner, their capital and current costs being predominantly funded by the State.
However, additional funding and support for students with special educational needs enrolled in both mainstream and special schools is provided under a variety of headings, as follows:
- Enhanced capitation grants in respect of students with defined levels of learning disability enrolled in special schools, classes or services.
- Free transport to special schools or special classes in mainstream schools or a grant to lieu to parents, where provision of special transport is not feasible.
- Escorts on school transport for children with SEN
- Additional teaching support for children with SEN who are fully integrated into mainstream schools
- Resource teaching support for children with low-incidence SEN who are integrated into mainstream schools
- Reduced pupil-teacher ratios in special schools and in special classes attached to mainstream schools
- Special needs assistant (SNA) support for children with care needs in special and mainstream schools.
- Grants for special equipment such as hearing and radio aids, braillers and computers.
- Grants for specialised seating and other furniture
- Start-up and annual grants for special class teachers, resource teachers and learning support teachers for the purchase of equipment and materials.
- Payment of travel and subsistence expenses to visiting teachers; payment of travel expenses to learning support resource/teachers who visit clusters of schools.
- Funding of specialist teaching services to special schools.
- Funding of Home Tuition Schemes for students with special educational needs who are unable, through illness, to attend school or who are awaiting a suitable educational placement
- Payment of salaries of Special Needs Assistants employed in mainstream and special schools.
- Payment of salaries of concessionary teachers in schools located in areas designated as disadvantaged.
- Payment of supplementary grants for equipment and materials to schools located in areas designated as disadvantaged
For further information on additional funding and supports, please visit www.education.ie and www.citizensinformation.ie
Identification of Special Needs
Assessment of Need
The Disability Act 2005 provides for a right to an independent assessment of need. A child who has a disability may be assessed under the Disability Act 2005 or under the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004. If a special educational need is identified as a result of the assessment of a child under the Disability Act, that aspect of the assessment must be referred by the Assessment Officer to the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) or to the Principal of his or her school for the purposes of an assessment under the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act, 2004. Health needs identified in an assessment under the EPSEN Act will be dealt with in a Service Statement under the Disability Act.
From June 2007, parents/guardians will be able to apply to the HSE for an independent and free assessment of need in respect of children with a disability under the age of five years. This assessment must start not later than three months after the initial application and the assessment report made available to parents/guardians when it is completed. There will be regular follow-up assessments as needs change.
The sections of the EPSEN Act that relate to the statutory assessment and education plan process for which the Act provides will be rolled out over the next three years. Under the Act, parents/guardians of a child with a disability can request an educational assessment from the NCSE, whether the child is in school or not. Following the assessment, an Education Plan will be prepared for the child that sets out the supports to be provided to help him/her get the most out of learning and school life. Where the assessment identifies health service needs, the HSE will be informed.
If parents/guardians are not satisfied with the assessment report or the education plan, they may appeal to the Special Education Appeals Board appointed by the Minister for Education and Science. (See the website of the National Disability Authority (NDA) at www.nda.ie for details)
Complaints regarding assessments and service statements prepared by the HSE may be made to the Complaints Officer in the HSE and, in the event of this not being satisfactory, to an independent Appeals Officer.
The NCSE has prepared national Guidelines on the Individual Education Plan Process for teachers, parents and schools. It is envisaged that these will have statutory effect once the relevant provisions of the EPSEN Act have been commenced. Please visit the website of the NCSE at www.ncse.ie for information on the Guidelines.
Section 15 of the EPSEN Act 2004 provides for planning for future educational needs. Under the Act, education plans are required to "have regard to the provision which will need to be made to assist the child to continue his or her education or training on becoming an adult." The wishes of the students and parents must be taken into account in this process and the school principal or the special educational needs organiser employed by the NCSE must take the necessary steps that are necessary to enable the child to progress to the level of education or training that is appropriate to his/her ability.
Children with serious visual or hearing impairment are generally referred to specialist visual impairment and audiology services and thereafter to the Visiting Teacher Service of the Department of Education and Science.
See www.citizensinformation.ie and www.education.ie for further information on the Visiting Teacher Service.
A database of children with specific physical, cognitive, sensory or emotional disabilities is maintained by the HSE. See www.hse.ie
Psychologists attached to the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) carry out psychological assessment of students with special needs as part of their duties. Some assessments in the primary and post-primary years are carried out in clinics managed by non-statutory voluntary organisations. These clinics are generally associated with or attached to centres or special schools for students with significant learning disabilities. Assessments are also conducted by psychologists directly employed by the HSE.
For further information on NEPS, please visit the website of the Department of Education and Science at www.education.ie and the website of the Citizens Information Board at www.citizensinformation.ie
For information on non-statutory voluntary organisations, please visit the website of Inclusion Ireland at www.inclusionireland.ie
See also section on Development of Integration/Inclusion
Special Needs Education within the Education System
Pre-school level
Infant classes in mainstream primary schools are regarded as providing pre-school education for all children, including children with SEN. They cater for 95% of all 5-6 year olds and 59% of 4-5 year olds. The figures include over a thousand children with identified special educational needs in mainstream primary schools and almost three hundred in special national schools. However, the Department of Education and Science has not been directly involved in providing focused pre-school education for children with disabilities apart from its delivery of the Early Start Programme which caters for, to some extent, but is not focused on, pre-school children with SEN. It also funds pre-schools for children of the Travelling Community. The Early Start Programme is a one-year preventative intervention scheme offered in selected schools in designated disadvantaged areas in Ireland. The objective of the programme, which is managed, funded and evaluated by the Department, is to tackle educational disadvantage by targeting children who are at risk of not reaching their potential within the school system. The Early Start Pre-School Programme was introduced in October 1994 in eight schools in disadvantaged areas, expanded the following year, and currently caters for approximately 1,700 pupils in 40 schools throughout the country.
Many other children attend some form of pre-school provision. For detailed information on this provision, please consult the website of the National Disability Authority at www.nda.ie
For detailed information on the Early Start Programme, please visit the website of the Citizens Information Board at www.citizensinformation.ie
However, due to the demand that has arisen in particular areas especially in relation to autism, the DES has, in recent years, established pre-school classes to facilitate the demand for early intervention provision for children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD).
The White Paper on Early Childhood Education "Ready to Learn" set out a comprehensive strategy for the development of early childhood education up to six years with a particular focus on disadvantage and special needs. To access this document, please visit the website of the Department of Education and Science at www.education.ie
At a policy level, the Irish Government is committed to the development of a national system of early education places for children with intellectual disabilities. The DES is currently engaging with the Health Service Executive (HSE) in this context. A cross-sectoral team representative of officials from the Departments of Health and Children, Education and Science, the Health Service Executive and the National Council for Special Education has been established to ensure that the arrangements for the implementation of Part 2 of the Disability Act 2005, which deals with children aged 0-5 years, and the EPSEN Act 2004 are progressed in tandem. Part 2 of the Disability Act is being commenced from 1 June 2007.
Useful Links
- The Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education (CECDE): A Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education is responsible for supporting and developing the provision of quality early childhood education in Ireland. Please visit their website at www.cecde.ie for further information.
- Department of Health and Children: www.dohc.ie
- Health Service Executive: www.hse.ie
- For a critique of pre-school provision in Ireland, please consult the "OECD Thematic Review of Early Childhood Education and Care Policy in Ireland." (July 2004). Available on the website of the Department of Education and Science at www.education.ie
The mainstream system
Students with special educational needs are accommodated in both mainstream and special schools. A revised system, the General Allocation Model (GAM), for the allocation of teaching resources to mainstream primary schools to cater for pupils who need additional support, is now in operation. This system involves a general allocation for primary schools to cater for pupils who are eligible for learning support and pupils with borderline mild and mild general learning disability and specific learning disability. The revised system continues to allow for the allocation of individual resource teaching hours in respect of pupils with lower incidence special educational needs, in accordance with Department of Education and Science circulars.
Details of the general allocation model and guidelines for the deployment of teaching staff and resources are contained in Special Education Circular 02/05. (Please visit www.education.ie for further details)
Resource teacher hours are allocated to post-primary schools for the support of individual students who have been assessed as having special educational needs. The allocation may consist of part-time resource teacher hours, whole-time teacher equivalents and/or teacher posts. The number of additional teacher hours allocated to a post-primary school depends on the number of students assessed as having special educational needs and on the level of their needs. The procedures set out in Department of Education and Science Circulars07/02 and 08/02 provide the basis for the allocation of resource teaching hours to post-primary schools, and the allocation of special needs assistant (SNA) support to both primary and post-primary schools. See www.education.ie for details
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) through its network of special educational needs organizers has responsibility for decision-making in relation to the allocation of resource teacher and special needs assistant posts to schools. Application can be made by a school to the NCSE for additional resources in respect of a student with special educational needs. The NCSE may request a school to make specific provision for students in a category of special educational need (for example visual impairment, moderate general learning disability or autism) within a particular geographical area. In such circumstances, additional staffing is usually allocated to enable the school to establish a special class/unit for students within the category of special educational needs involved.
For further information on the operations of the NCSE, please visit www.ncse.ie
Existing resources supporting pupils with Special Educational Needs
The EPSEN Act is the culmination of a process of investment in special educational services which has seen significant growth in the resources made available. In 2007, over €630m is being targeted at supporting the educational needs of these pupils.
Recent years have seen the appointment of:
- More than 1,000 teachers in special schools;
- Over 5,000 teachers at primary school level dealing directly with children with special educational needs, compared to less than 1,500 in 1998;
- At second level, over 2,100 additional teachers are working with pupils with special educational needs. This compares to approximately 200 teachers that were in place in 1998 for such pupils;
- More than 8,000 special needs assistants supporting pupils in primary and post primary schools – compared to 300 in 1998;
- Over €50m spent in 2006 on school transport for special needs pupils; and
- Since September 2005 all primary schools have access to Learning Support/Resource Teachers through a General Allocation system based on their pupil enrolment figures, which means early intervention is available from the time a child enrolls in the school.
For further information on numbers of students with SEN in mainstream primary and post-primary schools, please visit the websites of the National Council for Special Education at www.ncse.ie and the website of the National Disability Authority at www.nda.ie
Special Schools
Students with SEN are also accommodated in a variety of special schools and in special classes attached to mainstream primary and post-primary schools. The special schools cater for students with mild general learning disability, moderate general learning disability and sever/profound general learning disability; for emotionally disturbed students; for students with autistic spectrum disorders; for students with physical and multiple disabilities; for students with visual and hearing impairment; and students with specific learning disability. Special classes for students in most of these categories are attached to mainstream schools, mainly at primary level. According to the Statistical Report of the Department of Education and Science 2003/4, there were 6,621 pupils enrolled in a total of 108 special schools for students with disabilities.
Teacher Training - Basic and Specialist Teacher Training
Basic teacher training
Primary teachers are trained for three years in Colleges of Education. Candidates for training must have reached a designated standard in the State Leaving Certificate Examination. These colleges are affiliated to Universities. On successful completion of the courses, teachers are awarded the degree of Bachelor of Education. In most cases, they are then qualified to teach in primary and special schools.
For further information on programmes and courses, please visit the following websites:
St. Patrick’s College, Dublin (www.spd.dcu.ie)
Coláiste Mhuire gan Smál (Mary Immaculate College), Limerick (www.mice.ul.ie)
The Church of Ireland College of Education, Dublin. (www.cice.ie)
Marino Institute of Education, Dublin (www.mie.ie)
Froebel College of Education, Dublin (www.froebel.ie)
Montessori College (AMI), Dublin (www.montessoriami.ie)
Hibernia College of Education (www.hiberniacollege.net) provides online programmes at undergraduate and graduate level. The College is accredited by the Irish Government's qualifications awarding body for third-level educational and training institutions outside the university sector, the Higher Education and Training Awards Council. (www.hetac.ie) Hibernia College's graduate teacher training programme, The Higher Diploma in Primary Education for primary school teachers, is fully approved by the Dept. of Education and Science.
Second-level teachers take basic degrees (Bachelor) degree over three or four years in universities or institutes of technology. They may then attend a one-year full-time university course leading to a Higher Diploma in Education. Please visit the following websites for further information on graduate and postgraduate programmes and courses:
Universities
The University of Dublin/Trinity College (www.tcd.ie)
Dublin City University (www.dcu.ie)
University College Dublin (www.ucd.ie)
University College Cork (www.ucc.ie)
National University of Ireland, Galway (www.nuigalway.ie)
National University of Ireland, Maynooth (www.nuim.ie)
University of Limerick (www.ul.ie)
Institutes of Technology
Dublin Institute of Technology (www.dit.ie)
Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology (www.dliadt.ie)
Cork Institute of Technology (www.cit.ie)
Waterford Institute of Technology (www.wit.ie)
Blanchardstown (Dublin) Institute of Technology (www.itb.ie)
Athlone Institute of Technology (www.ait.ie)
Dundalk Institute of Technology (www.dkit.ie)
Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (www.gmit.ie)
Limerick Institute of Technology (www.lit.ie)
Letterkenny Institute of Technology (www.lyit.ie)
Tipperary Institute of Technology (www.tippinst.ie)
Institute of Technology, Carlow (www.itcarlow.ie)
Institute of Technology, Tralee (www.ittralee.ie)
Institute of Technology, Sligo (www.itsligo.ie)
Institute of Technology, Tallaght (www.it-tallaght.ie)
Undergraduate and graduate programmes in Home Economics, Music, Art, Design and Technology, and Religious Education are offered by some of these institutes and by some specialist colleges.
Please visit the following websites for further information:
St. Angela’s College, Sligo (www.stangelas.com)
The National College of Art and Design, Dublin (www.ncad.ie)
All Hallows College, Dublin (www.allhallows.ie)
Mater Dei Institute of Education (www.materdei.ie)
Specialist Teacher Training
Most of the Colleges of Education and some universities offer programmes leading to a Postgraduate Diploma in SEN
Please visit the following websites for details:
St. Patrick’s College, Dublin (www.spd.dcu.ie)
Coláiste Mhuire gan Smál (Mary Immaculate College), Limerick (www.mice.ul.ie)
The Church of Ireland College of Education, Dublin. (www.cice.ie)
St. Angela’s College, Sligo (www.stangelas.com)
University College Dublin (www.ucd.ie)
University College Cork (www.ucc.ie)
National University of Ireland, Galway (www.nuigalway.ie)
All of the above offer postgraduate programmes in SEN at masters’ level. In addition, most university Education Departments offer postgraduate programmes in SEN studies at masters and doctoral level. Please visit relevant websites for details.
Froebel College of Education offers a Certificate in the Teaching of Gifted and Exceptionally Able Children
St. Patrick's College offers a Graduate Certificate in the Education of Pupils with Autistic Spectrum Disorders. It also, in collaboration with the Institute of Child Education & Psychology (ICEP Europe), offers an accredited on-line diploma in special/inclusive education for primary and post-primary teachers.
See website of ICEP for further details (www.icepe.eu)
Development of Integration/Inclusion
The development of inclusion in Ireland
There has been a very considerable movement towards the development of inclusive practices in Irish education over the last decade. This was initially influenced by the Special Education Review Committee (SERC) Report 1993, which advocated a continuum of education provision for students with SEN; favoured "as much integration as is appropriate and feasible with as little segregation as is necessary"; and proposed basic principles to guide the future development of SEN provision, one of which was that appropriate education for all students with SEN should be provided in ordinary schools, except where individual circumstances made this impracticable.
The recommendation that students with SEN should be educated in ordinary (mainstream) school has been of particular significance in underpinning the allocation of increased resources for SEN provision to mainstream and special schools; in the development of new funding mechanisms for SEN provision in mainstream schools; and in the large increase in the number of student with assessed SEN in mainstream primary and post-primary schools. In 1998, the DES introduced the practice of an automatic response to applications for resources for students with SEN. This involved the allocation of resource teaching hours and special needs assistant support for students with SEN in mainstream schools. This system has been refined and revised over time. (See Section on Special Needs Education within the Mainstream System)
Current legislation supports the development and implementation of inclusive practices in Irish education. (See Section on Legislation)
The number of students with assessed SEN in mainstream schools has very significantly increased in recent years. This trend has been accompanied by a corresponding decline in the numbers attending special schools and changes in patterns of enrolment in these schools. (See Section on Special Needs Education within the Mainstream System)
The current policy of the Department of Education and Science is to secure the maximum possible level of inclusion of students with special educational needs in mainstream primary and post-primary schools, while ensuring that specialist facilities continue to be provided for students whose needs are such that they need to be placed in special schools or in special classes attached to mainstream schools. In implementing this policy, the DES and its associated bodies work with other Government Departments, statutory bodies, voluntary agencies, schools management bodies, third-level institutions and other professional organisations in the management and delivery of education provision for students with SEN.
The DES is committed to the enhancement of services to students with special educational needs and to the improvement of service delivery through the National Council for Special Education. It will underpin SEN provision through the implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act, 2004 and through special needs policy development. (Statement of Strategy 2005-2007)
For access to the Statement of Strategy 2005-2007, please consult the DES website at www.education.ie
Among the DES-associated bodies and other organisations that have provided essential support for inclusion are the following:
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE): www.ncse.ie
The Special Education Support Service (SESS): www.sess.ie
The SESS was established by the Department of Education and Science in September 2003. Its remit is to consolidate, co-ordinate, develop and deliver a range of professional development initiatives and support structures for teachers teaching students with disabilities in both mainstream and special schools.
The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA): www.ncca.ie
The Education Act 1998 specifies that the NCCA will advise the Minister on the requirements, as regards curriculum and syllabuses, of students with a disability or other special educational need. The NCCA, in consultation with education partners and other interested parties, has produced very detailed and comprehensive guidelines for teachers of children with general learning disabilities. These guidelines can be accessed on the NCCA website.
The Citizens Information Board: www.citizensinformation.ie
The National Disability Authority (NDA): www.nda.ie
The State Examinations Commission (SEC): www.sec.ie
Candidates with permanent or long-term conditions, including visual and hearing difficulties, or specific learning difficulties, which they believe will significantly impair their performance in the examinations can apply to the SEC for a reasonable accommodation(s) to be made to facilitate them in taking State examinations. Please visit website for details.
The Second Level Support Service (SLSS): www.slss.ie
See link to Special Education Support Service at: www.sess.ie
Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education: www.cecde.ie
National Centre for Technology in Education (NCTE): www.ncte.ie
The NCTE' has a particular focus on SEN and ICT. For more detail on its activities, please visit the website.
National Education Welfare Board: www.newb.ie
Third-level teacher education institutions have made a very significant contribution to the development of inclusive practices through the graduate and post-graduate courses they provide. See section on Teacher Training
Quality Indicators for Special Needs Education
Monitoring of Pre-school Services
Under the Child Care Act, 1991 the Health Services Executive (HSE) in Ireland is charged with ensuring the health, safety and welfare of pre-school children attending services. Pre-school children in Ireland are defined by law as "children under 6 years of age, who are not attending a national school or equivalent". Pre-school care providers are required to notify the HSE that they are providing services. In addition, they are required to take all reasonable measures to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of pre-school children attending their service. Overall, the Department of Health and Children has responsibility for ensuring compliance and developing policy in this area.
The HSE is required to inspect and regulate pre-school child care services. Specifics about the regulation of pre-school child care services are set out in the Child Care (Pre-School Services) Regulations 1996 and (Amendment) 1997. These regulations set down the standards of health, safety and welfare that must be in place before care services can be provided.
For further information on these regulations, please visit the website of the Health Services Executive at www.hse.ie
Evaluation of education provision at primary and post-primary level
Responsibility for the evaluation of education provision, including provision for students with special educational needs, is assigned to the Inspectorate, a division of the Department of Education and Science. The Inspectorate’s statutory quality assurance obligations in relation to educational provision are set out in section 13 of the Education Act, 1998. In the Act, among the functions of inspectors are inter alia to
- Evaluate the organisation and operation of schools and centres for education and the quality and effectiveness provided in those schools or centres, including the quality of teaching and effectiveness of individual teachers;
- Evaluate the education standards in such schools or centres
- Assess the implementation and effectiveness of programmes of education which have been devised in respect of individual students who have a disability or other special educational needs and
- Conduct assessments of the educational needs of students in recognised schools and advise those students, their parents and the schools as appropriate in relation to the educational development of those students.
Other legislation, such as the Education (Welfare Act) 2000, also has a direct bearing on the work of the Inspectorate.
For further information on the Inspectorate and on the Education (Welfare) Act, please visit the website of the Department of Education and Science at www.education.ie
