Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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773. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will outline her engagement with the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science since 1 January 2021 concerning the disparity for accreditation of similar SNA courses in two different third-level institutions (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13692/23]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) provide schools with additional adult support staff who can assist children with special educational needs who also have additional and significant care needs. Such support is provided in order to facilitate attendance by those pupils at school and also to minimise disruption to class or teaching time for the pupils concerned, and for their peers, and with a view to developing their independent living skills.

The national on-line training programme for SNAs is a major educational initiative, which will enhance the knowledge, skills and expertise of SNAs who are crucial to the inclusion of students with additional care needs in education. This is a high-quality and innovative pilot training programme which will inform ongoing policy considerations relating to future training options for SNAs.

The 2018 Review of the Special Needs Assistant Scheme published by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) includes a recommendation for the provision of a national online training programme. Arising from this recommendation the Department of Education awarded a four-year contract to University College Dublin (UCD) School of Education to design and deliver a new national online training programme for SNAs employed in schools. The publication of the tender and awarding of the contract took place prior to the establishment of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS) on 2 August 2020. The programme is fully funded by the Department of Education and delivered at no cost to the SNA.

The procurement process sought the delivery of an unaccredited training programme with a mechanism to accredit the programme in the future, should accreditation be sought. In their tender documents UCD indicated that it was intended to deliver the programme at QQI Level 6.

All SNAs who applied to complete the course with UCD did so on the basis that a Certificate of Completion would issue following conclusion of the programme. The subsequent accreditation of the programme was supplementary to this and was completed in line with the tender agreement. UCD is a recognised awarding body and completes accreditation of its own courses, as it did in the case of the SNA programme. While DFHERIS creates policy for the higher and further education and research sectors and oversees the work of state agencies and public institutions operating in these areas it does not have a direct role in accreditation of courses.

UCD has advised the Department that work has commenced to accredit the programme under UCD’s standard programme approval procedures as a Level 6 Special Purpose Award on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ). UCD is also considering how previous graduates from the programme might have their award accredited retrospectively.

Approximately 1,300 SNAs have completed the course to date and it is intended that the programme will be delivered to up to 3,500 SNAs over the four year scheme funded by the Department of Education

Reflecting ongoing engagement with stakeholders on SNA issues the Department of Education is committed to reviewing this programme after the four-year period has concluded. By the end of 2023, there will be over 20,000 Special Needs Assistants working in our schools the Department is very aware of the continuing need to provide appropriate training and development opportunities with a view to supporting the inclusion of students with additional care needs in education.

In this regard, in December 2022 the Department of Education established a dedicated SNA Workforce Development Unit in order to ensure that sufficient time and attention is given to examination of the SNA role including in the area of learning and development.