Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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578. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of the 145 special education teacher posts promised under Budget 2021 that have been hired. [51052/21]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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The Special Education Teaching allocation provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on each school’s educational profile.

Under the allocation model, schools have been provided with a total allocation for special education needs support based on their school profile.  

The provision of a profiled allocation is designed to give a fair allocation for each school which recognises that all schools need an allocation for special needs support, but which provides a graduated allocation which takes into account the level of need in each school.

Schools are frontloaded with resources, based on each school’s profile. The allocations to schools include provision to support all pupils in the schools, including where a child receives a diagnosis after the allocation is received by a school, or where there are newly enrolling pupils to the school.

The total number of SETs has increased by 39% since 2011, from 9,740 at that time, to over 13,600 at present.

Budget 2021 provided for an additional 145 special education teachers half of which have been allocated to schools. The remainder of this provision will be allocated by the end of 2021 to schools that achieve developing school status and those who qualify for an increase following an exceptional needs review .

Both the Department and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) are committed to ensuring that all schools are treated equally and fairly in the manner in which their school profiles have been calculated.

Accordingly, a number of review processes have been put in place to support schools.

A process is in place to address circumstances where the school profile significantly changed following the allocation process e.g. a developing school where the net enrolment numbers significantly increased.

The criteria for qualification for mainstream school developing school posts are set out in the Primary and Post Primary School Staffing Schedule for the 2021/22 school year.

Schools who qualify for additional mainstream developing school posts in accordance with these criteria also qualify for additional Special Education Teaching Allocations to take account of this developing status.

It is also acknowledged that there are some circumstances, which may arise in schools, which fall outside the allocations for developing school status.

These relate to exceptional or emergency circumstances which could not have been anticipated e.g. where the school profile changes very significantly, or where other exceptional circumstances have arisen in a school and which may require a review of schools capacity to provide additional teaching support for all pupils who need it in the school, or of their utilisation of their allocations.

A process is available where schools can seek a review of their allocations by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), including the utilisation of their allocations, in circumstances where a school considers that very exceptional circumstances have arisen subsequent to the development of the profile.  

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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579. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of the 990 SNA posts promised under Budget 2021 that have been hired.; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51053/21]

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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580. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the funding for any SNAs not delivered under Budget 2021 was carried over into Budget 2022. [51054/21]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 579 and 580 together.

The provision of education for children with special needs is an ongoing priority for Government.  The numbers of special classes, special education teachers and Special Needs Assistants are at unprecedented levels.

Following Budget 2021, it is expected that a total of 18,004 Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts will have been allocated to primary, post primary and special schools by the end of December 2021.

The allocation of SNA posts for 2021 will continue until the end of December 2021.

The NCSE advises that of the 990 post sanction in last year’s budget, 919 have been allocated to date and the remaining 71 will be allocated before the 31st December 2021.

Budget 2022 announced details of €9.2 billion in funding for education and includes funding for an additional 1,165 additional special needs assistants to provide support to children with special educational needs, bringing the total number of SNAs to 19,169.This represents an increase of 81% in the number of SNAs provided since 2011 at which point 10,575 SNAs were available.

The allocation of 1,165 SNAs announced in Budget 2022 is to meet the care needs of pupils in2022 and will enable the establishment of new special classes, creation of new places in special schools, support children in mainstream classes for the 2022/23 school year.

The allocation of the 1,165 SNA posts covers primary and post-primary schools as follows:

- 574 to support students in new special classes

- 46 to support students in new special school places

- 545 to support students in mainstream classes

The special education funding for 2022 is over a quarter of the current expenditure budget for the Department of Education.