Special Needs Schools: Mid Ulster

Oral Answers to Questions — Education – in the Northern Ireland Assembly at 2:00 pm on 27 September 2016.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Keith Buchanan Keith Buchanan DUP 2:00, 27 September 2016

2. Mr K Buchanan asked the Minister of Education for a breakdown of investment, including capital investment, that his Department has made to special needs schools in Mid Ulster since 2013. (AQO 324/16-21)

Photo of Peter Weir Peter Weir DUP

I thank the Member for his question. There is one special school in Mid Ulster, which is Kilronan School. Since 1 April 2013, the Department has invested approximately £8 million in the school, of which £6·7 million was in resource funding and £1·3 million was in capital investment for minor works such as an extension to the building and the creation of a sensory garden.

Photo of Keith Buchanan Keith Buchanan DUP

I thank the Minister for his answer so far. What action is he taking regarding the overall funding pressure on and in relation to special educational needs (SEN)?

Photo of Peter Weir Peter Weir DUP

We are in a particular situation when it comes to special educational needs. Thankfully, for instance, we are seeing earlier diagnosis of special needs problems, which allows us to have an earlier level of intervention. Obviously, that will mean that there is an increasing level of demand for SEN support and the costs associated with that. For example, if we take a snapshot of the children with an SEN statement as one measure of that, the percentage of all students with an SEN statement has increased from 4·3% four years ago to the latest figure of 4·9%. A significant amount of the Education Authority's (EA) budget is being spent on special educational services, comprising a range of things, including special schools' support services, classroom assistants and transport costs.

Special education funding has been prioritised as much as possible as part of the budget-setting process over the last number of years and additional funding for SEN has been secured. For instance, in the last monitoring round, £5 million was secured from the Finance Minister as part of in-year monitoring. This is very much a demand-led service, so, should the EA identify budget pressures for SEN that cannot be met from the existing education budget, I will continue to work with Executive colleagues to ensure that we secure additional funding.

Photo of Sandra Overend Sandra Overend UUP

I thank the Minister for that response. I do not know whether he has the statistics to hand, but can he detail the number of pupils attending Kilronan School and whether the school has met the demand for places over the past five years? I know from speaking to people in the school that that is an issue in our local area in Mid Ulster.

Will he give serious consideration to a new capital build for Kilronan special school?

Photo of Peter Weir Peter Weir DUP

I do not have the exact figures to hand. Kilronan covers the full remit of special needs schools, covering children aged three to 19. Therefore, it is a very productive model. The assessment of numbers for a special school is on a slightly different basis from the assessment for mainstream schools. I am happy to get the detail on the number of pupils to the Member.

All of these issues are considered as part of the overall calls for capital build, in which there is a level of open competition. One of the restrictions and, maybe, frustrations that all of us have is that a capital budget could be spent at least three or four times over in any one year. When there are calls for capital build, be it by way of a school enhancement programme or major capital works, there will be the opportunity for all schools to bid. They will then be graded according to the matrix of need and a scoring system. Given the nature of that, it would be inappropriate for me to comment on an individual school and say that it will be given priority. There will be fair and open competition for those places. I think that everybody is aware of the need to provide a particular level of support for special schools. In the near future, as we move towards the area-planning process, there will be a specific section on special schools. That will also form part of the assessment on the way forward.

Photo of Ian Milne Ian Milne Sinn Féin

I thank the Minister for his answers so far. Will the Minister ensure that nursery-school provision for special needs schools such as Kilronan will meet the needs of children with complex needs and the needs of their families?

Photo of Peter Weir Peter Weir DUP

The placement of children in nursery schools, particularly on the special needs side, is an operational matter directly for the Education Authority (EA). We always want to make sure that our provision is entirely adequate and fit for purpose. If it is an issue of a capital project or a development proposal, a particular decision will have to be taken. There is a limited amount that I can comment on directly, but I want to try to ensure that any facilities, particularly those for special needs children, are adequate for what is needed. We have to realise, particularly when dealing with special needs, that we are talking about what has been, in a virtuous way, a changing picture over the years. Particularly in the case of severe learning difficulties, children who many years ago would not have survived to school age are now able to enter the school system and go on to adulthood. There is a constantly changing position in special needs, and we must keep constantly up to date to ensure that what we get for that category of children meets their needs.

Photo of Robin Newton Robin Newton Speaker

Before I call Ms Bradshaw, I remind her that any supplementary must be specific to the constituency.

Photo of Paula Bradshaw Paula Bradshaw Alliance

I will leave it.