In his response to an address by the Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD, at the Fórsa Education conference last week, national secretary Andy Pike criticised the “false starts and confusion” during the five years that have elapsed since the NCSE published its review of the Special Needs Assistant scheme.

He called on the minister to continue her work with the Department of Education and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) to bring clarity on the direction of the special education sector.

He added: “In 2018 the NCSE review of the Special Needs Assistant scheme was published. It set out a new course for the provision of supports for students with additional care needs, a framework for education and training for SNAs, called for greater clarity on terms and conditions, proposed a new three-year ‘frontloading’ allocation cycle and proposed a new Schools Inclusion Model.

“Some clarity is needed on the direction of Government policy. We understand why frontloading cannot be implemented as it stands, and we know that the department has no wish to see significant turmoil or job losses for SNAs. However, the school sector does need to know what the future holds,” he said.

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