Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
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693.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of special needs assistants and vacancies for each county; how many vacances there are currently in County Clare, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter.[35786/24]

Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
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694.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of children that had an SNA at the start of the academic year in September 2023 and September 2024, by county, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter.[35787/24]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 693 and 694 together.

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

The NCSE has the responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs including the allocation of special needs assistants (SNA). Allocations are provided to schools on the basis of the school's overall profile of need. As a result, the number of students supported by SNAs varies from school to school.

We have been steadily building on the number of SNAs in our education system. At the end of the 2022 school year there was just over 18,000 SNAs in schools. Budget 2023 provided for an additional 1,194 SNA posts and Budget 2024 for a further 1,216. By the end of June this year there were over 21,000 SNAs in schools, double the number there were in 2011.

The board of management, as the employer, is responsible for filling the vacancy and the decision on whether to employ a full time SNA to fill a full-time post or to employ an equivalent number of part time SNAs rests with the employer. Therefore information on vacancies is therefore held at a local school level.