In 2016, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) was requested by the then Minister Richard Bruton to review the Special Needs Assistant (SNA) Scheme and to advise him on what support options are needed to provide better outcomes for students with additional care needs. Following extensive research and consultation with schools, parents, SNAs and other stakeholders, a report was submitted last year.
The review found that the SNA scheme was working really well particularly for younger children and for certain type of care needs, for example, mobility and toileting. It also found that a new and more widely based model of support involving both education and health supports was needed to meet the range of student need currently presenting in our schools. The review made a number of recommendations including the way SNA support is allocated to schools and the need to build school capacity through training. Overall, the Council recommended a new service model, the School Inclusion Model that would involve the provision of speech and language, occupational and behavioural therapies in schools and the development of a national nursing scheme to cater for children with the most complex medical needs. The overall aim of the model is to improve outcomes for children by ensuring each child receives the right support at the right time.
The Government approved a pilot of the new Model in 75 schools for the 2019/20 school year which will be independently evaluated. A budget of €4.75m has been allocated to support implementation of the Review findings.
Consultation is a central feature of the development and implementation work. Over 50 people, including SNAs and their representatives, attended an information and consultation event on 30th April 2019. Separately, there is ongoing consultation with the union representing SNAs. Four meetings have been held to date and the next is scheduled for next week.
The role of the SNA currently remains that which is set out in current Department Circulars.
