Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I would like to thank the Deputy for the question and would like to advise the following:

Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education & Inclusion, for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

The vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. Where children with more complex needs require additional supports, special classes and special school places are provided.

In 2023, the number of teaching and SNA posts in our schools will increase with an additional 686 teachers and a further 1,194 SNAs.

For the first time ever there will be over 19,000 teachers working in the area of special education and over 20,000 SNAs. Together we have almost 40,000 qualified and committed people in our schools who are focused wholly and exclusively on supporting children with special educational needs.

Special education teachers provide additional teaching support for students with special educational needs enrolled in mainstream classes in primary and post primary schools.

The special education teaching (SET) allocation model provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on each school’s educational profile.

The SET model has been in place since 2017. It was recommended by the NCSE and is designed to distribute the total available number of special education teachers across primary and post primary schools based on the relative need of each school, as evidenced by a number of key indicators.

The SET model is a fairer and more transparent way of allocating teaching resources to schools and represents a significant shift in the way that students with special education needs are supported in mainstream classes.

Previously, students needing additional teaching support required a diagnosis in order to access support which caused delays in providing the support and also imposed a burden on both schools and parents. The change in policy was welcomed by both schools and parents as the model is based on the principle that those students with the greatest need receive the most support.

The model encourages schools to support students with special educational needs in mainstream classes alongside their peers. In fact most students with special educational needs are enrolled in these classes. This approach is also consistent with the Education of Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act (2004).

When the SET model was introduced it was designed to be updated on a regular basis so as to distribute the total available resources across the school system based on profile of need. As the level of student need may change in a school over time, some schools will gain under this distribution, with these gains balanced by equivalent reductions in schools where the model indicates reduced need.

Re-profiling is the means of ensuring that new or increasing need in schools is met by transfer/redistribution of teaching resources from other schools whose need has reduced as shown by the model.

The SET resources provided to schools is based on special education needs of the pupils enrolled in the school and the resources must be utilised to ensure that students with special education needs are supported so that they can achieve the best possible educational outcome.

In general schools are front-loaded 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 model, including the data and indicators used to inform the distribution of special education teacher resources, is currently being reviewed to ensure that these valuable resources are allocated fairly and transparently across our primary and post-primary schools. The allocation to the 12 island schools will be reviewed as part of the overall model review.

If those schools believe that unique circumstances have occurred and their allocation is not sufficient to meet the special education needs of the pupils they can apply to the NCSE for an exceptional review of their allocations via NCSE.ie

My department and the NCSE are committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I would like to thank the Deputy for the question and would like to advise the following:

Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education & Inclusion, for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

The vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. Where children with more complex needs require additional supports, special classes and special school places are provided.

For 2023, the spend by my department on special education has been substantially increased by over 10% on last year, meaning that for 2023 my department will spend over €2.6 billion on special education. Further progress has been made in Budget 2024 where 26% of my department’s budget will be dedicated to providing supports for children with special educational needs, representing a 5% increase on Budget 2023.

This includes funding to support children with special educational needs in mainstream classes; funding for new special classes and new special school places; additional special educational teachers, special needs assistants (SNAs) and funding for the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS).

In 2023, the number of teaching and SNA posts in our schools will increase with an additional 686 teachers and a further 1,194 SNAs and in 2024 a further 744 teachers, and 1,216 SNAs will be added to deliver up to 2,700 new places for children with special educational needs. This will mean we will have over 41,500 qualified and committed people in our schools who are focused wholly and exclusively on supporting children with special educational needs.

The NCSE has the responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs.

Over the last number of years, my department and the NCSE have introduced a number of strategic initiatives to plan for and provide sufficient special class and special school places.

These initiatives are bearing fruit with almost 1,300 new special classes sanctioned and seven new special schools established over recent years.

My department engage intensely with the NCSE in relation to the forward planning of new special classes and additional special school places. This forward planning work is well underway ahead of the 2024/2025 school year. This work involves a detailed review of statistical data in relation to forecasting demand for special class places, an analysis of available school accommodation, consideration of improved data sharing arrangements and a particular focus on the provision of special classes at post-primary level.

As a result of this forward planning, earlier this year, Minister Foley and l announced the establishment of two special schools in Carrigtwohill, east Cork and Dublin 7 for the 2023/24 school year, with further capacity being expanded in 11 other special schools.

Along with the two new special schools, 385 new special classes – 252 at primary and 133 at post-primary level – have been sanctioned by the NCSE for opening in the 2023/24 school year.

In Co. Galway, 15 new special classes have been sanctioned for the 2023/24 school year, 10 at primary level and 5 at post-primary level, bringing the total number of classes in Co. Galway to 149.

Information on the list of schools with special classes, the types and locations of these classes is published on the NCSE website and is available at:www.ncse.ie/special-classes

As demand for new special classes at post-primary level is expected to increase significantly over the next few years, due to increasing demographics and increasing prevalence rates, my department and the NCSE have engaged with post-primary stakeholders in relation to the provision of special classes.

In October of last year, my department wrote to all post-primary schools to advise them of the need to begin planning to provide additional special classes. It is envisaged that all post-primary schools will be required to provide special classes over the next 3 to 5 years, with an approximate average of 4 special classes in each school.

The NCSE is committed to ensuring that sufficient special education placements will be available for children for this school year and future years.

Parents seeking special class placements for their children are advised to contact the NCSE locally so that their needs can be taken into account for planning purposes. The local special educational needs organisers (SENOs) remain available to assist and advise parents of children with special educational needs. Parents may contact SENOs directly using the contact details available at:www.ncse.ie/regional-services-contact-list

My department and the NCSE are committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality and where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.