Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 1 July 2015

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Social Protection

Role of Special Needs Assistants: Discussion

1:00 pm

Photo of Mary MoranMary Moran (Labour) | Oireachtas source

My first question, and this feeds into all the submissions made today, relates to training. I think there is a significant need, and this is something that is being reflected back to me at all time. Let us bring it back to the basic requirement to fulfil the role of a SNA, which is three grade Ds in the junior certificate examination. The role outlined in the circular from the Department of Education and Skills includes catheterisation, assistance with toileting or care needs and giving medication, including dealing with EpiPens. There is no specific standardised training for this. I was alarmed at the responses I got. One person is actively engaged in catheterisation. If something goes wrong, what comeback do they have?

As I said, the basic qualifications are three grade Ds. Looking at the list of the thousands of reports that have come in, the qualifications of SNAs at present are way beyond that. In many cases the SNAs are more qualified than the teachers themselves, with some having qualifications ranging from PhD to a masters in child care, while others are nurses or people with degrees in intellectual disability. All of them are qualified to know what is going on. I can stand over my statement from personal experience that the SNAs are more qualified to know what is going on than the teacher who takes up his or her first job after coming out of college. I do not want to go off topic but we also need to look at the role of the teacher and the qualification and the standard that is required for teaching. We need a statement of priority on the SNA.

I wish to comment on Ms Teresa Griffin's point on parental involvement. As a parent of a child with special needs, I have a vested interest. I could not agree more with Ms Griffin as very often parents have no idea what the role of the SNA is, and when the SNA is taken from their child, they see that as a perceived cut. I think it is a good idea to have leaflets coming out but I think we need to get the message into schools that there should be more contact between the parents, the principals, the teachers and the parents. I have gone in for an individualised education programme, IEP, meeting every year and I have never met the SNA. The SNA is never involved. I will finish on that point but I will come back in later.

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