Dáil debates

Wednesday, 1 December 2021

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate

Special Educational Needs

9:52 am

Photo of Josepha MadiganJosepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for comprehensively outlining the SNA allocations issues west Cork in particular faces.

I will put in context my role as Minister of State with responsibility for special education in the rolling out and administering the €2.2 billion budget we secured this year, which is more than 25% of the entire education budget. That is an increase of 60% since 2011. Within the €2.2 billion resource, we managed to secure funding for an unprecedented number of 1,165 SNAs. By the end of December 2022, we will have 19,169 SNAs circulating within the education sector. That is an increase of 81%. The statistics can sound abstract and cold when we are talking about special education. I simply outline them to show the Deputy the progress that has been made in the sector. That is not to say that, on occasion, schools will not require additionality of SNA posts. The Deputy outlined some of the matters faced by schools in Skibbereen.

He will be aware of the exceptional review process, which is a valuable process whereby a school can apply directly to the NCSE to increase its allocation in circumstances where it is of the view that such an increase is required. He outlined some cases. I assume these are mainstream schools as opposed to special schools. It is important to stress that the allocation for SNAs in April 2021 has remained at that level. The front-loading allocation model will be introduced in September next year and it may benefit the schools to which the Deputy referred. The allocation is purely based on the school profile, as opposed to the individual needs of the children within the school. It is up to the schools themselves to allocate the SNAs as they see fit to individual children. The NCSE takes a number of criteria into account when assessing whether a new SNA is required.

I had a look at Cork in general to examine the success rate of the exceptional review process. I am not sure if the schools to which the Deputy referred applied. This year, there were 195 applications from 164 schools in Cork. He specifically mentioned primary schools. Some 72 of them received an increase totalling 42.86 SNA posts. Some 15 post-primary schools received a total of 10.75 SNAs. There was an increase for 87 schools in Cork. The NCSE does assess the individual requirements of schools, as per their school profile.

It is also important to note that a mainstream class no longer requires a diagnosis for a child to access an SNA. That saves the family having to go to the expense, trouble, and inconvenience of trying to get a professional report, as that is no longer required. SNAs are freely available for mainstream classes.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.