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MINISTER FOR EDUCATION Richard Bruton has today announced that 860 new special needs assistants (SNAs) will be recruited to work in schools with children who have learning difficulties.
The new assistants, who will work in a support role in classrooms, will be available for allocation to schools from September this year. The increase will represent a 7% rise and the minister said this would mean every child who needs an SNA in the coming school year will get one.
It will bring the total number of SNAs in the country to 12,900, at an annual cost of €425 million.
Speaking about the announcement, Bruton said:
It will be supporting, for example, 160 new special classes – many of those are for children in the autistic spectrum – which will be opening from the 1st of September. This will provide a very important resource to allow those children in those classes make real progress.
He said the government’s aim now is to “use our economic success to create a fair and compassionate society”.
“In few areas is this more important than in making sure that children with special educational needs can fully participate in schools and maximising their chances of going on to other opportunities.”
The government has also agreed to carry out an assessment of the SNA scheme so it can “provide better outcomes” for children with special educational needs.
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As an SNA and someone who has a child who has needed an SNA in the past, the criteria for needing assistance and decision to allocate will ultimately be down do the SENO. Hurrah for progress though. Anything in the right direction is most welcome. Also my job is even safer now. :)
what is the qualification needed to be an SNA? In our local school, they seem to have friends of staff and parents association members rather than recruiting publicly. is there an educational requirement for SNAs to ensure the students get the best help possible for the assistance they require?
Alien8 Most if not all SNA have completed a specific course designed for SNA. But the joke is that the dept of Ed says that to become an SNA you require a JNR cert with English, math. irish. I’m not saying they cant do the job at 16/17 yrs but if you are going to work with children & adults with special needs you need to do some course that is special needs based. I’ve worked with many SNA’S some are amazing & there are a small few who are just not suited for the job. Are these new SNA’S full time new positions or part time positions. There is a big difference. Where I am there is 1 full time & 1 part time working with 5 children all in different room’s. Its great to see more SNA in the schools. But more are required with the cut backs over the last few years.
Nepotism is rife indeed, especially in the past when indeed all you needed was your JC. It was who you knew.
I am one of the old contract SNAs. Permanent full time. These jobs simply dont exist anymore but I started in 2002. I do know that those employed now or renewing yearly contracts are asked to do courses in Special needs.
Talking about ratios. In special schools where i am there is 1 SNA per 4 children with moderate ID/special needs. I love my job and Im good at it but its so so tough at times. There needs to be ongoing support for SNAs when it comes to being physically attacked at work. Its something that is brushed under the carpet and pushes excellent SNAs out of the career. There needs to be strategies and training put in place on how to deal with aggressive outbursts instead of a swap around of staff to hush the situation. I know I am going off on a tangent but I believe it is as important as training up new SNAs.
I am a fully qualified SNA having completed a one year diploma course and have three years experience.
In my experience some schools will employ people who are not qualified . This should not happen and is one of the reasons I gave up my job. As a parent you should insist that the SNA is qualified.
Looks lovely on paper but in practice ???
Exactly Ciara. Don’t insult us with your “statements” until ye actually have a full fledged promise in place. Funding went to many wrong places and poor kids were the ones left in the lurch.
No they won’t , believe you me. They might get access, which can mean 4 children in 4 different rooms share ONE SNA. What the child needs and what the DES will grant are often quite different.
Exactly Bríd ! 15 minutes here and there throughout the day. .
Agree Brid. To get even access to an SNA, it has be proved that the child has care needs that prove a danger to themselves and others. This must be supported by documentation from relevant professionals such as psychologists, occupational therapists etc. As with such things in Ireland, you could be waiting a long time to get your child assessed by such professionals. Even then the DES might not agree with an assessment’s recommendations. Likewise, I will believe it when I see it.
Early intervention is vital. What about the pre schoolchildren who need additional support?
As a a parent of a child who just received a woefully low allocation of SNA hours for her needs, I will believe it when I see it .
Tell her to get very bold and her hours will increase, sadly seems to be the way its going
Shouldn’t need to be said. It should be happening already.
In fact wasn’t this promised before and the removed when the economy went to sh it? Undoubtedly they’ll be cut again when things get tough because looking after the most vulnerable is never a priority for Irish governments.
Great news and nice to see something positive from the government. No doubt the whiners will be out complaining about something or other related to this story
No doubt indeed Nick. But after years of getting repeatedly screwed over I can imagine there’d be a few skeptical people out there and parents of SN children are just one of many many groups.
Shelly
I understand that but if we keep this glass half empty apathetic attitude we will get no where. This country has become too inclined to whinge and complains and look for problems. People need to wake up and do positive things for the future rather than the current moaning all the time. Positivity becomes contagious and at the moment there is naff all chance of that happening
Who took the special needs assistants away?
Yeah right believe it when we see it.
Every child who needs an SNA will get one? On whose opinion will that be based? As a teacher, we have identified many students who would need SNA support and don’t get it. The SENOs’ hands are tied. There is an increasingly likelihood that numbers of SNAs are being reduced rather than increased because the minimum requirement or severity of the child’s condition has been raised. Many children are losing out. On another issue, the work of the SNAs is being affected by the moratorium on promotion, and SNAs are finding themselves being asked to complete work beyond their remit. The SNA contract needs to be amended so that they only work with the students needing help. The current contract allows them to be treated as secretaries to management.
Yep you are dead right. I worked in a national school as a SNA where we were expected to come in a week before teachers to get classrooms ready. Washing bathrooms clearing shelving organising books. How does this help the child? It doesn’t. One of the reasons I retired.
This is just giving false hope to parents . It would be fantastic if it was to happen but I doubt it ..
There is something flying over Leinster House is it a pig or an elephant
Colin with a bit of luck its an elephant dropping large turds on the turds working, sorry meant to say employed there. I will believe this when I see it. Again 1 SNA working with 3or 4 children at the same time in different rooms.
I also think the whole area needs to be examined and the definition of special needs is looked at. I have heard from a cpl of friends who are SNAs and I believe there are children who just don’t speak English being categorised as special needs which means in my opinion those that really deserve and need it such as those with autism lose out. Surely parents should send their children to additional English classes instead? There are many who don’t speak English after they go home and then get this assistance which I think is wrong.
Extra teaching hours for students who don’t speak English as a first language were severely cut back. If memory recalls it was estimated that about 1 in 5 of such children also have special needs. Many state schools have the frustration of finding students suddenly turning up in an exam year with hardly a word of English.But of course the 100 odd million given by the state to fee paying schools won’t be touched when it comes to balancing the books. Hardly surprising when you see where most of current government attended school..
But needing English speaking lessons is not a special need it’s a need. Of course if 1 in 5 are special need then no argument there. But it is true to say that a number of non-English speaking people who come to Ireland do not speak English at home and so they don’t get the practice they need to learn, what can be done here? There must be more effort on their part too. As for the 100 odd million given to fee paying schools, where teachers want to teach is their prerogative, private or public. The parents in fee paying schools pay fees and so they get facilities and perhaps additional teachers but teachers need to be paid regardless – private or public!
http://ncse.ie/ Allocations for September aren’t exactly adding up in accordance with this story. As usual.
The numbers suggest a cost, per SNA, of slightly north of 125k. Doesn’t add up. After SNA salary is paid, where is the extra cost being spent?
Scrap that, I got my sums wrong.
Unfortunately, with this lousy shower, its always “I promise”.
Its rarely “I’ve done this”, and if it is, its never exactly true.
We need to get rid of this lot.
Promises, Promises, Promises. No doubt they’ll smother it in bureaucracy and make nobody eligible for it to save money, just like they did for the funding for the flooding victims.
Good to see a good news story, though I doubt the target will be reached. There will be some reason or other that the promise won’t be fulfilled, it’ll switch to a two or three year delivery programme. More dangling carrots to help keep the government together as long as possible.
That’s the way it’s going to happen, however, in the meantime, every bit of extra help that does actually arrive on site is welcome. This (limited) refocusing our Departments on service delivery rather than chopping budgets is, I suppose, another positive. Just wondering how exactly they will F it up, what ‘Peter’ they will rob to pay Paul, or how will they ‘yellow pack’ the jobs.
@Linda Oreilly: hi Linda! I was thinking of doing a course to become an SNA! Would you recommend doing it? And where did you do your diploma if you don’t mind me asking? Thanks!
Untrue spin, speaking from personal experience. Seeing will be believing….
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