Written answers

Tuesday, 19 July 2011

Department of Education and Skills

Special Educational Needs

10:00 pm

Photo of Dara CallearyDara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Question 160: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the position in respect of special needs assistant posts at a school (details supplied) in County Donegal; and the reason notification has issued to inform one SNA at that school that he or she will be losing his or her job from September. [20759/11]

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Firstly, I wish to clarify for the Deputy that Special Needs Assistant (SNA) allocations are not permanent, as the level of SNA support allocated to a school may be increased or decreased as pupils who qualify for SNA support enrol or leave a school. They are also decreased where a child's care needs may have diminished over time.

A Special Needs Assistant whose post is surplus to the approved allocation to the school may be entitled to a redundancy payment under the terms of circular 58/2006 - titled Redundancy Arrangements for Special Need Assistants. Support to SNAs who may have been made redundant is provided for within the terms of this scheme.

The recruitment and deployment of SNAs within schools are matters for the individual Principal-Board of Management. The Board is the SNA's employer and the terms of employment are subject to the conditions of the contract of employment.

The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and SNAs to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support, which now includes a requirement for the NCSE to have regard to an overall cap on the number of SNA posts.

The NCSE has issued a circular to all schools advising of the allocation process for SNA support for the 2011/2012 school year. A key feature of the amended scheme will be to provide for an annual allocation of SNA support to eligible schools. The NCSE is currently in the process of informing schools of their annual SNA allocation for the coming school year.

Photo of Dara CallearyDara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Question 161: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will consider extending panel rights to special needs assistants. [20760/11]

Photo of Ruairi QuinnRuairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Firstly, I wish to advise the Deputy that Special Needs Assistant (SNA) allocations are not permanent, as the level of SNA support allocated to a school may be increased or decreased as pupils who qualify for SNA support enrol or leave a school. They are also decreased where a child's care needs may have diminished over time. There are no plans to introduce panel rights for SNAs.

The recruitment and deployment of SNAs within schools are matters for the individual Principal-Board of Management. The Board is the SNA's employer and the terms of employment are subject to the conditions of the contract of employment.

The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and SNAs to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support, which now includes a requirement for the NCSE to have regard to an overall cap on the number of SNA posts.

The NCSE has issued a circular to all schools advising of the allocation process for SNA support for the 2011-2012 school year. A key feature of the amended scheme will be to provide for an annual allocation of SNA support to eligible schools. The NCSE is currently in the process of informing schools of their annual SNA allocation for the coming school year.

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