Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to share details of my Department’s budget for 2025 as Minister of State with responsibility for special education and inclusion. As Deputies are aware, ensuring that children with additional needs receive an appropriate education with the supports they require is a priority for this Government.

Since being appointed to this role last April, I have visited almost 30 schools in nine counties, met with 35 different organisations representing children with additional needs and attended 14 sessions with groups representing children, their parents, teachers, special needs assistants, SNAs, school leaders and special interest groups. All these engagements have provided me with valuable insights and perspectives on the day-to-day challenges and issues within special education and the measures needed to help children reach their full potential and prosper in school.

It is these insights that have framed the special education budget for 2025. The total funding package I have secured totals €2.9 billion. This represents a 6% increase for 2025, or €159 million. By way of context, some 250,000 children with a special educational need are accommodated in mainstream schools with supports. Approximately 28,000 children are either in a special class or a special school.

Central to providing an appropriate school place for children with special educational needs is provision of special education teachers and special needs assistants. This budget will result in an additional 768 special education teachers and 1,600 extra SNAs being employed to support children in school. This is the highest ever number of SNAs allocated. In 2025, therefore, we will have more than 23,000 in our education system. We will also have some 21,000 special education teachers employed.

These additional teachers and SNAs will allow us to open another 400 special classes in both primary and post-primary for 2025, bringing the total number of special classes to over 3,700. It will also allow us to create an additional 300 places in special schools. Some 2,700 children will benefit through provision of more special classes and special school places.

A number of measures are also under way to ensure that children with special educational needs receive early confirmation of a school place. I have established a task force for Dublin 15, which is an area under particular pressure. This task force will be independently chaired and will include parents, schools, my Department, the National Council For Special Education, NCSE, and other stakeholders. It has been instructed to establish demand for special classes and special school places as early as possible, using data on waiting lists and known demand. The task force, in conjunction with my Department and the NCSE, is also working to develop a common application system for primary special class places, which will avoid the need for parents to apply to a number of schools. The NCSE, which has additional resources allowing it to increase the number of special educational needs officers, SENOs, from 65 to 120, will also visit 800 schools in September and October this year to begin forward planning.

I have also secured additional capital funding of €80 million, which will allow my Department to order modular accommodation and get building works under way so that classes are ready for September 2025. This Government recognises the practical challenges for schools and parents in meeting the needs of children with additional needs. To help with this, budget 2025 will see targeted investment in a number of other areas including €62 million for the summer programme, which is enormously important for the most vulnerable children in our society; the creation of a special education innovation fund to develop and pilot some of the interesting ideas that special interest groups have raised with me directly; and supports for training, increased capitation and transport grants.

On my many school visits, transition from primary to post-primary school has been a key issue that is brought to my attention. Having to go from a familiar one-class setting in a primary school to multiple classes in secondary school and be part of a much larger school population, and the logistical challenge of navigating it, is far more complex. All these issues have been raised with me. To help with this, budget 2025 will see targeted investment for the first time in assisting primary schools to help manage the effective transition of children with the highest level of need into post-primary education. I am also pleased that additional supports will be provided to post-primary schools to co-ordinate provision of special education supports. I will continue to work hard to support children with additional needs and work with all stakeholders to ensure an appropriate education is provided for these.

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