Support Information

 Students with dyslexia sitting the Leaving Certificate in Ireland can access Reasonable Accommodations at the Certificate Examinations (RACE) to ensure a fair chance of success. Below is a list of available supports: 

The four main grounds for which accommodations will be considered are:

• Learning Difficulty
• Hearing Difficulty
• Visual Difficulty
• Physical Difficulty

Examples of accommodations available include enlarged or Braille versions of questions, voice-activated computers, reading pens, assistive technologies, while taking the state examinations. Further examples of possible accommodations are listed under the ‘Application Process’ section below.

There are a number of accessible arrangements available from enlarged print, modified papers with graphs etc simplified to braille and colour identifier.

Enlarged examination paper – The standard version of the examination paper is enlarged from A4 to A3 size.

Modified examination paper – The standard paper is modified to make it accessible to people with severe visual impairments.

Braille examination paper – A copy of the examination paper that is produced in braille format. Tactile diagrams with braille labelling are also provided where necessary.

Reader/reading assistance – A person who reads some or all of the question paper for you. They read only what you ask them to read.

Exam reading pen – An exam reading pen is a small hand-held device which you can use to scan words, phrases or sections of the examination paper and have the text converted to speech which you listen to using ear-phones.

Colour identifier – Candidates who are colour blind may need a colour identifier. This is a person available to help, most likely in the Geography and Science examinations, but also as the need arises in other subjects.

Assistive technology – The technology you are allowed to use will depend on what you are used to using in school and what you are eligible for.

Preferred location within the centre – The school arranges for you to be placed close to the superintendent.

Personal sound device in main centre – Headphones with a personal sound device for aurals.

Special centre for aural examination – For the aural (listening comprehension) part of a language examination, you are allowed to use a personal sound device (CD player), with or without individual headphones, in a special centre with other students or, exceptionally, in an individual special centre.

Modified aural examination – You have a face-to-face session with an examiner rather than a sound device.

Exemption from aural component – language subjects – If there are genuine reasons why a modified aural examination cannot be carried out, you may be granted an exemption from the aural component.

Oral for hearing-impaired candidates – For the oral component of the examination, the examiner is told of your hearing impairment and can arrange for the lighting and positioning that you need to help you lip-read.

Exemption from oral component – If there are genuine reasons why an oral for hearing-impaired candidates cannot be carried out, you may be granted an exemption from the oral component.

Sign language interpreter – You can have a sign language interpreter if you have both a hearing impairment and a reading difficulty.

Waiver from the assessment of aspects of spelling, grammar, and punctuation in language subjects – You are not penalised for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation in English, Irish and foreign language examinations.
Word processor with spell check enabled – Instead of writing your answers, you type them on a laptop or other word processing device.

Word processor with speech-to-text software – Instead of writing your answers, you say them into a laptop with software that can convert your speech into text.

Recording device – Instead of writing your answers, you say them into a digital or other recording device.

Scribe – Instead of writing your answers, you say them to someone who writes them down.

Drawing aids – If an injury or other condition means that you have difficulty using a tee-square or other drawing tools normally used in technological subjects, you may be allowed to use drawing aids such as parallel-motion boards and smaller drawing sheets in the Junior Cycle subjects Graphics and Wood Technology and in the Leaving Certificate subjects DCG, Construction Studies and Technology.

Exemption from Practical Test or Project in Junior Cycle Home Economics – If you have a physical condition that prevents you from taking part in the Food and Culinary Skills Examination (the practical test) in Junior Cycle Home Economics, you can get an exemption from it. Similarly, if you have a condition that means that you cannot do any of the three options in Optional Study (the project), you can get an exemption from this.

The environment and timing for examinations can also be arranged for examinations.

Please note all information above is a summary of the information provided in the RACE Guide for Students.

This information should not be relied on as changes may have happened since publication 

If you need more information, you should talk to the teacher in your school who deals with the Examination Commission. This is often the learning support teacher.
You may also find additional information on the Examinations Commission website

Applications for reasonable accommodations are made through your school to the State Examinations Commission (SEC).

The application requires information about your disability or condition as well as your educational needs and how your condition affects your school work. You will need to sign a form to give the school permission to pass on your information to the SEC.

External candidates who have no links to any school or centre, should apply for RACE directly to SEC at the time you are applying to take the exams. You can download the RACE application form from the SEC website.

You can find further information on reasonable accommodations for State exams on examinations.ie.

Cornamaddy
Athlone
Westmeath
Ireland

Tel: (090) 644 2700Fax: (090) 644 2744Homepage: http://www.examinations.ie/ 

1. Initiate the Process Early:
    
   • Begin discussions with your school's learning support or resource teacher well in advance of the exams to identify necessary accommodations.

1. School's Role:
    
   • The school is responsible for submitting RACE applications on behalf of the student. They will gather all required documentation and evidence to support the application.

1. Required Documentation:
    
   • A School Statement detailing the student's learning difficulties and the impact on their education.
   • Educational assessments or psychological reports that diagnose dyslexia or significant literacy difficulties. Citizens Information

1. Application Submission:
    
   • The school completes the necessary application forms and submits them to the State Examinations Commission (SEC) on behalf of the student. 

1. Acknowledgment and Decision:
    
   • The SEC reviews the application and communicates its decision to the school and the student. If approved, details of the granted accommodations are provided.

• If an application is denied, students have the right to appeal the decision. The SEC provides an Independent Appeals Committee to review such cases. Further appeals can be directed to the Ombudsman or the Ombudsman for Children if necessary. 
• 
  

• Early Engagement: Start the process as early as possible to ensure all accommodations are in place well before exam time.
   
• Stay Informed: Regularly check the SEC's official website and maintain communication with school officials to stay updated on any changes or additional requirements.
   
• Comprehensive Documentation: Ensure all necessary assessments and reports are current and accurately reflect the student's needs to support the application effectively.
   

By following these guidelines and adhering to the timelines, students may  can secure the necessary supports to perform optimally in their examinations.

Work and Access is a set of supports to help people with a disability get a job or stay in work. The supports aim to remove or reduce barriers in the workplace for people with a disability.

Supports for Jobseekers, Employees, Self-Employed include:

• Workplace Needs Assessment, to assist in identifying the need for additional supports
• Communication Support, for interview and in work
• In-Work Support, to help you perform in your position
• Personal Reader, to assist you in work
• Work Equipment, to assist you in your job

Work and Access employer supports include:

• Workplace Needs Assessment, to assist in identifying employees need for additional supports
• Workplace Adaptation, to accommodate additional employee needs
• Disability Equality and Inclusion Training, to provide employers and organisations with access to training for staff, to gain a better awareness and understanding of disabilities in the workplace

Work and Access supports replace the Reasonable Accommodation Fund and the Disability Awareness Support Scheme

To be eligible, you must meet the following conditions:

1. You need to be over 18 and within legal working age

2. You must work in one of the following ways:

• full-time or part-time – at least 8 hours a week or 32 hours a month
• self-employed
• work experience (6 months or more)
• internship (6 months or more), or
• apprenticeship
• you can also apply if you have a job offer letter, a job start date or a letter confirming a job interview

3. You must be working or looking for work in the Republic of Ireland in any sector apart from the public sector

4. You must have a disability or long-term health condition that impacts on your ability to work

The disability or health condition must be likely to last longer than 12 months. You must:

• be able to provide professional evidence confirming your disability or health condition and stating that it is likely to last longer than 12 months

Or

• be getting a long-term disability payment

Work and Access is not available to people who:

• do work that is not paid, like voluntary roles

Or

• work in the public sector. Costs for public sector workers who need reasonable accommodations should be met by their employer

To be eligible, an employer or self-employed person must be:

• private sector
• community, not-for-profit, and voluntary

Or

• self-employed. You are considered self-employed if you:

◦ operate a business on your own account or in partnership

◦ work for an employer on a self-employed contractual basis, or

◦ operate a franchised business on a self-employed basis

Recognised by Revenue

You must be a legal entity and/or a charity (with a CHY number) recognised by the Revenue Commissioners.

Tax compliant

You must supply a tax clearance access number ( TCAN ) when you apply for a copy of your tax clearance certificate. Before a payment is made, we must check your TCAN. If we cannot validate it, we cannot issue a payment. You can download your TCAN directly from ros.ie or through your accountant.

If you are:

• a new employee or existing employee
• in employment
• self-employed

you or a person acting on your behalf, can apply for funding for a Workplace Needs Assessment.

The scheme pays up to €2,500 of the eligible costs to carry out the assessment.

A Workplace Needs Assessment is used to identify the adjustments that can be made to the workplace to remove the barriers you experience or may experience in carrying out your job or returning to work. You must get a specialist to do a Workplace Needs Assessment.

Communication Support is also available if needed to help an assessment take place

An employee, a self-employed person, or a person acting on behalf of the employee can apply for funding for Communication Support, such as a job interview, job induction, and for further workplace communication support.

To get Communication Support funding, you must meet the general eligibility requirements for Work and Access and have a communication support need.

You can use this support if you:

• are Deaf or hard of hearing and need an Irish Sign Language interpreter (ISL), lip-reader, or other interpreter

Or

• have a disability or health condition and need communication support, for example a Lámh support worker

The interpreter must be a registered Irish Sign Language interpreter with The Regulatory Centre for Irish Sign Language Interpreters.

Supports available:

Pre-interview support - 1 hour

An eligible job candidate can use this support to pay for a 1-hour long familiarisation session to prepare for the interview with their interpreter.

Interview support - 3 hours

An eligible job candidate can use this support to pay for up to 3 hours for interpreter support for a job interview. There is no limit to the number of interviews you can attend with an interpreter or communication support worker. To apply for interview supports, you must have a letter or email from your potential employer or a recruiter confirming your interview.

Induction support - 12 hours

An eligible employee who is new to their post can use up to 12 hours of job induction support to pay for an interpreter within the first 12 months of their new appointment. This support can be used for job induction activities such as reviews. To apply for job induction and for ongoing workplace communication support, the employer must sign off on the employee’s application.

Ongoing support - 24 hours

An eligible employee who is either new to their post, or in an existing employment, can use up to 24 hours of this support to pay for an interpreter over a 12-month rolling period. The support can be used to assist with workplace communication and can be used in addition to the induction support.

Communication support for a Workplace Needs Assessment - 10 hours

This communication support is only available to a person who requires support for a Workplace Needs Assessment to take place.

Communication support for In-Work Support - 30 hours

This communication support is only available to a person where a Workplace Needs Assessment recommends that it is needed.

The interpreter can attend in-person or remotely. The disabled person's preferred attendance format should be accommodated where possible.

You can apply for all the communication supports available. For example, you can apply for job induction and In-Work Support in addition to assistance at the job interview stage.

To apply for the Communication Support you must complete the Work and Access application form.

You can find out more information about the supports by:

• contacting your local Intreo Centre
• emailing our central team at WorkandAccess@welfare.ie
• writing to:

Address:Central Team, Finglas Intreo Centre, PO Box 13736, Freepost FDN7696 , Dublin 11Email:workandaccess@welfare.ie
Summary: 

A new or existing employee or a self-employed person can apply for funding to cover the costs of assistive equipment or technology needed for them to work or keep working in their business premise and/or remote-working premises.

Note: Adaptations to equipment are funded under the Workplace Adaptations support.

The employer or self-employed person will be needed to support and sign off on the application to source and buy the approved equipment and claim reimbursement from the department.

In all cases, the person with a disability keeps ownership of the equipment unless it has been integrated into the equipment of the employer.

The support cannot be used to fund equipment usually provided by employers and includes any item which would normally be needed to do the tasks of the job.

It cannot be used to:

• fund employer obligations required under law, such as:

- Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 - Health and Safety Authority (hsa.ie) (as amended)

- Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2015 – see information in The Employment Equality Acts 1998-2015 – A Summary - IHREC - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission

• meet the usual costs of setting up and running a business for either an employer or self-employed person
• fund job specific equipment usually provided by employers

To get funding for work equipment you must meet the requirements for Work and Access.

An employee or self-employed person can use this support if they have a disability or health condition and need assistive equipment or technology to work.

The scheme pays:

• up to €12,000 towards the cost of assistive equipment or technology for the business premises, including training
• up to €12,000 towards the cost of assistive equipment or technology for the remote-working premises, including training, if specialist training for the equipment is required
• 
  

The Work and Access work equipment support can provide support:

• towards the cost of assistive equipment or technology for the business premises, including training, and
• towards the cost of assistive equipment or technology for the remote-working premises, including training, if specialist training for the equipment is needed

Examples of assistive equipment or technology include:

• specialised furniture
• alternative keyboards
• screen magnifiers
• induction loop systems
• amplifiers for telephones
• sip and puff systems
• screen-reading software
• voice recognition software
• real time captioning systems
• licence renewal of assistive software

Software licence renewal can be claimed annually but the employee or self-employed person must apply for this funding and get approval in advance of buying the licence.

Assistive technology must be compatible with workplace devices/systems before buying.

To apply, you must complete the Work and Access application form.

You can find out more information about the supports by:

• contacting your local Intreo Centre
• emailing our central team at WorkandAccess@welfare.ie
• writing to:

Address:Central Team, Finglas Intreo Centre, PO Box 13736, Freepost FDN7696 , Dublin 11Email:workandaccess@welfare.ie
Summary:Application forms must be sent by post to the PO Box detailed above ↑ 

SURE is a tax relief that provides a refund of Income Tax that you paid in previous years. You can claim the relief if you are starting your own business and you are:

• an employee
• an unemployed person
• a person who has recently been made redundant.

The general conditions for SURE are that you must:

• establish a new company carrying on a new qualifying trading activity
• have mainly Pay As You Earn (PAYE) income in the previous four years
• take up full-time employment in the new company as a director or an employee
• invest cash in the new company by purchasing new shares  
• keep the purchased shares for at least four years.
• 
  

There are a number of specific conditions that the individual and the company must meet in order to qualify for this relief.

 More details on when an investment is a qualifying investment can be found in Relief for investment in corporate trades. 

This support is designed for people with a disability who need modifications to their workplace to enable them to get or stay in a job.

An employer, together with their employee, or a self-employed person, can apply for funding to cover the costs of necessary adaptations to equipment, technology, or a business premises (which is not a person’s home).

A Workplace Needs Assessment is required to support the claim for a Workplace Adaption support.

Once full approval is granted, the employer will procure and buy the approved adaptation and claim re-imbursement from the scheme.

The scheme pays up to €25,000 towards the cost of adapting equipment, technology, and the business premises (which is not a person’s home).

Examples of adaptations:

• minor modifications such as ramps or toilets
• alarm systems with flashing lights
• 
  

The support cannot be used to:

• pay for equipment or adaptations usually provided by employers. Such equipment is any item which would normally be needed to do the tasks of the job, whether the person doing the job has a disability or not. Such equipment depends on the individual job circumstances
• pay for supports required under law, such as:

- Building Control Acts 1990 to 2014

- S.I. No. 487/1997 Building Regulations 1997. In particular, Building Regulations 2010 Technical Guidance Document M

- Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 (as amended)

- Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2015 which includes obligations with respect to accessing premises, sanitary facilities, parking and other factors for people with disabilities where the workplace or business also has public access

• to meet the usual costs of setting up and running a business for either an employer or self-employed person
• funding for adaptations to their home even if it is the employee’s primary workplace. To get funding for adaptations to their home, an applicant can apply for the Housing Adaptation Grant with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage

To get necessary adaptations to work equipment, technology, and the business premises you must meet the requirements for Work and Access.

An employer or self-employed person can use this support if the person has a disability or health condition and need adaptation to equipment or technology or a business premises (which is not a person’s home) to work.

To apply, you must complete the Work and Access application form.

You can find out more information about the supports by:

• contacting your local Intreo Centre
• emailing our central team at WorkandAccess@welfare.ie
• writing to:

Address:Central Team, Finglas Intreo Centre, PO Box 13736, Freepost FDN7696 , Dublin 11Email:workandaccess@welfare.ie
Summary:Application forms must be sent by post to the PO Box detailed above ↑