Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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172. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to amend the workings of the special needs assistant, SNA, supplementary panel to bring it into line with the panel which operates for primary school teachers (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43403/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The supplementary assignment arrangements for Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) were established on foot of proposals brought forward by the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) when the Haddington Road Agreement was being agreed. These supplementary assignment arrangements for SNAs continue to operate under the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018 - 2020, and both unions representing SNAs, namely SIPTU and IMPACT, have signed up to that agreement. As set out in the LRC proposals, the supplementary assignment arrangements for SNAs only apply to current SNAs who are notified that they are to be made redundant. Accordingly, the purpose of these arrangements is to facilitate eligible SNAs who are being made redundant by one employer in filling SNA vacancies that may become available in another school/ETB.  When an employer has an SNA vacancy to fill, they must undertake the recruitment process in accordance with the provisions outlined in Circular 0042/2017 “Recruitment of Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) –Supplementary Assignment Arrangements for the 2017/18 School Year”. 

In addition, under the provisions of Circular 0042/2017, where a school/ETB has an additional allocation of SNA hours/posts, then that additional allocation of hours/posts must be offered to any existing part-time SNAs in that employment, in order of seniority, before the employer has recourse to recruitment.

These arrangements give SNAs the alternative of redeployment instead of redundancy and give SNAs greater stability and a better chance of a full-hours contract, while at the same time ensuring that schools can continue to recruit SNAs with the right skills and experience to meet the needs of the children in their care.

The arrangements are reviewed annually by the unions, school management bodies and the Department, with the assistance of an independent chairperson, and this annual review enables the parties to examine and resolve issues arising in the operation of the arrangements.

On 5 July 2017, I announced that 975 additional Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) were to be allocated to schools over the period September to December 2017, a 7.5% increase in SNA numbers in order to meet the level of assessed demand.  This announcement brings the total number of SNAs to 13,990, representing an increase in the total numbers of SNAs of 32%, from 10,575 to 13,990 since 2011.  

In addition, and as announced as part of Budget 2018, funding is being allocated for the recruitment of over 1,090 new Special Needs Assistants in 2018 (based on current forecasts), including some 130 posts which will be filled in the period between January and June next year, with the remainder being appointed from September 2018.  This brings the total number of SNAs to over 15,000.

It is inevitable that redundancies will occur in individual schools, due to circumstances such as a special educational needs pupil moving to another school, moving from first to second level, or second to third level, etc.  However, overall and due to the significant increase in SNA numbers since 2011 and the introduction of the Supplementary Assignment Panel Arrangements, SNAs have benefited from greater stability in their employment.  I have no plans to amend the workings of the SNA supplementary panel to bring it into line with the panel which operates for primary school teachers.