Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Question 52: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will outline the consequences for schools and pupils needing additional help due to the reduction in the allocations for resource teachers and special needs assistants for 2012/2013; if he has considered the concerns outlined by representative groups in the education sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30224/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Firstly I wish to clarify for the Deputy that there is no overall reduction in Resource Teaching or Special Needs Assistant (SNA) numbers for the coming school year. This Government has maintained funding for resources for children with special educational needs at a time when there is a continued requirement to make expenditure savings across a range of areas. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports including Resource Teaching and SNA support, to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's established criteria for the allocation of such supports and the staffing resources available to my Department.

There are 10,575 SNA posts available for allocation in the 2012/13 school year which is the same number of posts which were available for allocation for the current school year. The NCSE is currently notifying schools of their SNA allocation for 2012/13, based on the number of valid applications received and the extent of the care needs of qualifying children. It is expected that the demand for SNA support in the coming school year can be met within current numbers and that all children who meet the criteria for SNA support will have access to support. The NCSE will have some 264 available posts for allocation throughout the school year in respect of late or emergency cases arising or new diagnoses.

There are 5,500 WTE Resource Teaching posts available to the NCSE for allocation for the coming school year, which is the same as last year. This does not include the 4,450 resource and learning support teachers being provided to all schools to support children with less complex, or high incidence, learning needs. With rising enrolments in schools, the number of valid applications received by the NCSE for the 2012/2013 school year to date is higher than last year. It is necessary therefore to manage these resources so that every child who needs support can access support and are treated the same. Therefore, in order to ensure there are sufficient remaining posts to make allocations for late or emergency applications, while staying within the Employment Control Framework (ECF), the NCSE will initially allocate 85% of assessed needs to schools. Schools are being asked to make up any time lost through grouping of students and more effective management of teaching time, to ensure that every child who needs support can access support and are treated the same.

As a result of the allocations announced on June 13th by the NCSE, 55% of schools will see no change in SNA allocation for the 2012/13 school year. 23% of schools will see some reductions in SNA allocations, while 22% of schools will see some increases in their allocations. This clearly illustrates that SNA allocations are adjusted each year, to ensure that the children who need SNA support to assist with their care needs, are provided with that support. My Department has met the representative groups in the education sector to outline the arrangements for allocating Resource Teaching SNA support to schools for the 2012/2013 school year.

Finally, I wish to assure the Deputy that it is my intention that resources available to my Department are utilised to optimum benefit to ensure the best possible outcomes for students with special educational needs. In this regard my Department is seeking advice from the NCSE on policy options for the allocation of these resources in future, with a view to ensuring that the most appropriate and efficient model is in place in the coming years.