Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 May 2014
1. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills the way he proposes to address the deep concerns that have been expressed with regard to the recently published Circular 0030/2014 on special needs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23469/14]
Amharc ar fhreagra2. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the changes he has made to the criteria for allocating special needs assistants have made it more difficult for children to access SNA help when they need it and if he will review these changes. [23451/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy question asks how the Minister proposes to address the deep concerns being expressed about the recently published circular on special needs.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 2 together.
The purpose of Circular 0030/2014 is not to reduce the number of SNA posts in schools but to clarify the role and purpose of SNA support and ensure it is targeted at those pupils who need it. My officials consulted school management bodies prior to issuing the circular and are setting up further meetings with management bodies and parent representative groups to allay fears.
Last December the Government approved an extra 390 SNA posts for the period to the end of December 2014, which means that there are now almost 11,000 SNAs available to work with children who have an assessed care need in primary, post-primary and special schools. There are some 10,965 posts available for allocation, of which 10,656 SNA posts have been allocated, more than at any time previously. This means that rather than a reduction in the number of SNA posts, there is provision for a further 309 posts to be allocated to schools to the end of December. These extra posts will ensure the Government's policy of ensuring every child assessed as needing SNA support will receive access to support. Implementation of the circular should ensure children's care needs are better understood in order that SNAs can work more effectively to assist children.
I thank the Minister of State for his reply, but parents and teachers across the country have noted a squeezing of the SNA support available to students and are rightly concerned about the tone of the aforementioned circular from the Department. A number of specific points made in the circular are giving rise to concern among parents and teachers. It states that in order to receive SNA support, the care needs outlined must be of such significance that they are beyond what would normally be expected to be provided by way of support for a child by the class teacher or other school teachers or beyond the level of assistance which would be offered by other students or the student's fellow pupils. The idea that a departmental circular would put the responsibility on fellow pupils to cater for needs that up to now would have been catered for by SNAs is of great concern to many. At post-primary level, the circular states only students with chronic and serious care needs should need SNA support and that continued and ongoing access to SNA support is generally not desirable for post-primary students. The tone of this statement is deeply unsympathetic. I ask the Minister of State, in the context of the aforementioned points made in the circular which are causing real concern in terms of their implications for students who need support, to provide reassurance that this does not indicate a further squeeze on SNA hours.
The Deputy referred to the squeezing of SNA posts, but that is certainly not what is occurring. As I mentioned, we have the highest number of SNA posts allocated in the history of the State and there are 309 posts yet to be allocated between now and the end of the December.
I will outline why the circular was issued. In June 2011 the Department initiated a value for money review of the SNA scheme. In May 2013 the National Council for Special Education published its policy advice on supporting children with special educational needs in schools. Both reports concluded that the SNA scheme had been very successful in supporting the care needs of children with special needs in schools and assisting in their integration and inclusion. Ultimately, that is the function and role of the SNA - to assist in meeting the care needs of the young person who may initially find it challenging to operate in a school environment, particularly at primary level. However, I argue that it is the ambition of every parent and teacher of every child with special needs that ultimately the child achieve full independence and succeed to the best of his or her capacity while moving through the education system. That is ultimately what we are trying to achieve; we are not trying to frighten people. The criteria for the allocation of SNAs have not changed. When a young person needs SNA support, it will be available up until the point where he or she can operate independently. Ultimately, that is the ambition of parents and teachers in general when it comes to caring for children with special needs.
The reality for many parents is that this circular is very frightening because it has moved the goal posts. The Minister of State may not care to admit it, but it is going to make it more difficult for students who need SNA support to receive it. That is a fact. We have already seen cases in our constituency offices of children who previously had SNA support and who are now in the process of losing it because the goal posts have moved significantly. The new circular states a child must have a "profound" disability in order to qualify for SNA support. Much of the change comes on the back of the review about which the Minister of State spoke. One of the findings of the review was that many schools did not know what was the role or remit of SNAs. There is a lot of work to be done with schools in that regard. Schools must be educated on the role and remit of SNAs and how best to use them. However, that does not take away from the fact that many parents are extremely worried that children who currently receive SNA support are going to lose it because of the annual review.
I agree with the Deputy when he makes reference to the importance of clarifying the role of special needs assistants, SNAs, in schools. As I stated in my earlier reply, the Department's officials are at present engaging with school management bodies and parent representative groups to outline exactly this to them, as well as to allay any concerns or fears they might have that the recent circular will lead to a reduction in SNA numbers or allocations, because that is not the intention and certainly is not what will happen. It always has been standard practice that SNA allocations are reviewed annually. The circular acknowledges that pupils will have care needs that will remain constant and there are some disabilities which remain with the young person throughout his or her life. In the case of such young people, their care needs rarely evolve or improve. However, for very large numbers of other children, the exact opposite happens and with the support of an SNA and the classroom teacher, those care needs diminish over time, which is something that should be welcomed. The fact that SNA allocations are reviewed annually does not mean this will lead to a reduction in SNA support for individual pupils or for schools that have pupils who have continuing needs.
I stress that what is being done here is simply clarifying the role of the SNA and ensuring that where an SNA support is needed and where those resources need to be channelled to those who need it most, this will be done and is exactly what will happen. While I do not make this charge against the two Deputies opposite, I caution people against spreading fear among parents that this circular somehow will diminish the allocation of SNAs. That is not the intention and as I stated previously, the Government is increasing the number of posts by 309 before the end of this year. At the end of 2014, the number of SNAs allocated in the education system will be the highest since the SNA support system began.
In his earlier response, the Minister of State outlined that it is the ambition of every parent that his or her child will get to a position where he or she does not need any SNA support. Indeed, it is the hope of every parent at the outset that his or her child would not need such support in the first place. However, in cases where a child needs such support, it is the ambition of a parent to be able to have the reassurance that the child actually will receive it when it is needed. The important point here is that reassurance should be given that this service will be provided. However, in recent years, the experience on the ground has been quite different. In common with the other Members present, I am sure the Minister of State will have spoken to teachers and parents. When one visits a school, one of the biggest difficulties teachers will raise is the pressure on them in respect of SNA resources. While the number of SNAs has increased slightly, the Minister of State indicated there would be a further 300 this year, the actual demand last September alone, for example, increased by 10%. The number of SNA supports did not match that increase. In addition, there has been a similar increase in demand for resource teacher posts and as a result, the Government decided to try to reduce the resource teaching hours being allocated per student but subsequently made a U-turn in that regard. Similarly, the Government did not increase the number of SNAs. A difficulty also arises with regard to the increasing practice of special educational needs organisers, SENOs, giving shared access to an SNA at school level, after which the responsibility is left with the teachers and the school to try to manage that. This is exceptionally difficult and nearly impossible in many situations.
Thank you.
There are issues to be addressed in this regard and genuine concern is being expressed by schools.
We are over time, thank you.
There must be reassurance given that additional supports are provided in order that the pressure currently evident in schools can be relieved.
To pick up on the last point, the best people to ascertain whether a pupil needs an SNA are those who carry out the assessment. In carrying out that assessment, they indicate what resources and help a student may need. At present, SNAs are being allocated to schools and unfortunately, the number of SNAs that some schools have does not match the needs of their students and thereafter, a great onus is being left on school management to try to distribute those SNAs as best as possible. Does the Minister of State agree that if a SENO's assessment states that a child is in need of a particular resource such as, for example, an SNA or so many hours per week, this student should get that support and this should not be constrained by budgetary measures?
To clarify once again, the purpose of this circular was not to provide for or allow for a reduction in the number of SNAs allocated nationwide. That there will be almost 11,000 SNAs in place by the end of the year is testament to this fact. The purpose of the circular simply was to clarify the role of the SNA in the school setting. That role is to provide for the care needs of a young person who needs such support to be able to operate successfully in a school environment. In the past, perhaps, the role of the SNA somehow had expanded beyond that role and it was important to be able to clarify for parents, teachers and school communities as a whole what exactly that role required. It is not and never has been the intention to use this circular somehow to reduce the supports available to young children who are in need of those supports to be able to function successfully in a school environment. Ultimately, the professional decision that is taken on the allocation of SNAs rests with their SENOs, who work as agents of the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, at a local level. The SENOs engage with parents and teachers and conduct a professional assessment of whether a child requires that SNA support. They also carry out an ongoing review of each child's individual care needs as the child progresses through the school system. Consequently, if that SENO makes that recommendation, then yes, the child obviously will need, require and secure those kinds of supports. However, as a child goes through the system, his or her care needs over time evolve and hopefully will lessen. It is important to reflect this in the allocation of SNAs in order that those who are entering the school system, perhaps at junior infants for the first time, can have resources directed towards them in times when the resources available are very scarce.
