SNA Allocations announced for September term
by Niall Shanahan
 
Fórsa's head of education Andy Pike said: "Schools will have exactly the same number of posts in mainstream classes next year as they were allocated for the current school year."
Fórsa's head of education Andy Pike said: "Schools will have exactly the same number of posts in mainstream classes next year as they were allocated for the current school year."

The Department of Education and Skills has announced the details of SNA allocations for the next school year, due to commence in September 2020. In a special bulletin published on Monday, (27th April) Fórsa’s head of education Andy Pike said the new term will see an end to fragmentation of SNA posts in mainstream classes.

 

Andy said: “Schools will have exactly the same number of posts in mainstream classes next year as they were allocated for the current school year. This means that there will be no redundancies or reductions in working hours for SNAs in mainstream classes for the next school year.

 

“This is a change from previous practice and results from the decision to proceed with the first element of the frontloading allocation system. SNA allocations in special education classes and special education schools will continue to be calculated as before,” he said.

 

Andy said the union expected the department to delay full implementation of the frontloading model due to the Covid-19 pandemic: “The guarantee against any SNA redundancies or cuts in hours within mainstream classes is welcome. However this is only one element of the proposed schools inclusion model and we urge the department to recommence consultation on the many other elements as soon as our schools re-open,” he said.

 

The Department of Education and Skills (DES) circular (available HERE ) makes clear that the role of the SNA is unchanged and states clearly that SNAs can only be directed to carryout work as set out in the national contract (as per the list of SNA duties in Circular 0030/2014).

 

Andy said Fórsa welcomes the NCSE confirmation that all new or additional SNA posts allocated through the supplementary allocation process will be allocated to schools as either a 0.5 whole-time-equivalent (WTE) post or a full time post. “This delivers a long held policy objective to end the practice of fragmenting SNA posts once and for all. This was a key feature of the frontloading proposal providing enhanced job security and security of hours and income for SNA members,” he said.

 

Read the full bulletin HERE.

LikeLike (2) | Facebook Twitter