Skip to main content
Normal View

Special Educational Needs Staff

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 July 2019

Tuesday, 23 July 2019

Questions (510)

Niamh Smyth

Question:

510. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of new special needs assistant, SNA, jobs being introduced in September 2019 in national schools in counties Cavan and Monaghan (details supplied). [32989/19]

View answer

Written answers

I announced on 27th May that 792 additional SNA posts will be allocated to schools for the beginning of the 2019/20 school year, with up to 130 additional posts expected to be allocated by December 2019.

By the end of this year, there will be up to 15,950 SNAs working in our schools, an increase of over 51% since 2011.

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible for allocating a quantum of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support for each school annually taking into account the assessed care needs of children qualifying for SNA support enrolled in the school.

The NCSE allocates SNA support to schools in accordance with the criteria set out in Department Circular 0030/2014, which is available on my Department's website at www.education.ie, in order that students who have care needs can access SNA support as and when it is needed.

In considering applications for SNA support for individual pupils, the NCSE take account of the pupils' needs and consider the resources available to the school to identify whether additionality is needed or whether the school might reasonably be expected to meet the needs of the pupils from its current level of resources.

SNA allocations to all schools can change from year to year as children with care needs leave the school, as new children with care needs enrol in a school and as children develop more independent living skills and their care needs diminish over time.

The NCSE publish the allocations for individual schools for each school year and this information is available on their website, www.ncse.ie.

In respect of the details supplied with this Question by the Deputy, which raises a separate issue, the recruitment SNAs is a matter for school management.

Top
Share