Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 June 2013
300. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the fact that special needs assistants throughout the country are losing their positions and being replaced by candidates on the JobBridge programme; his views on whether this is unfair on SNAs who are losing their full-time hours; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27599/13]
View answerThe National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports, including Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support.
I wish to advise the Deputy that there has been no reduction to the total number of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts which available to the NCSE to allocate to schools this year. 10,575 whole time equivalent SNA posts are available for allocation. The NCSE allocates a quantum of SNA support for each school annually taking into account the care needs of all of the qualifying children enrolled in the school, and on the basis of the assessed care needs of the children. Once an allocation of SNA support has been made to a school, it is then a matter for the Board of Management of the school to recruit and deploy suitable SNA staff.
It has not been brought to the attention of my Department that SNAs are being replaced by candidates on the JobBridge programme. I would welcome any further information the Deputy may provide on this matter. Details of all of the SNA allocations which have been made to schools by the NCSE are available at www.ncse.ie. All schools were asked by the NCSE to submit their applications to the NCSE for SNA support for the 2013/14 school year by 15th March, 2013, and schools will be advised of their new allocations in advance of the coming school year.
