Charles Ward (Donegal, 100% Redress Party)
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393. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of additional special needs assistants employed over the years 2020 to 2025, by county, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65609/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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Over 23,000 special needs assistant (SNA) posts are currently allocated to mainstream classes, special classes and special schools. Budget 2026 has provided for an additional 1,717 posts for allocating for the 2026/27 school year.

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is the statutory body responsible for the provision of special education and allocating supports for children with special educational needs. It is currently examining where new provision is required for the 2026/27 school year and will allocate SNAs to schools providing this new provision. It will also review existing allocations and redistribute SNA posts to schools based on the care needs of the students enrolled.

For the 2026/27 school year the NCSE is working on releasing SNA allocations for the 2026/27 school year in line with annual staffing schedule which normally occurs in early February each year. This will allow schools to better plan for the teaching and care needs of their students in a timelier manner. It will also provide certainty and assurances to affected staff of their future school placements by allowing the SNA redeployment processes to conclude as appropriate. The NCSE will, as it has done in previous years, publish SNA allocations on their website: www.ncse.ie/set-hours-and-sna-allocations.

As the NCSE is responsible for the allocation of SNA posts to schools I will arrange for your query to be forwarded to the NCSE for their attention and direct reply.

Deputies are also welcome to raise such queries with the NCSE directly through their dedicated Oireachtas query line at: oireachtasqueries@ncse.ie.