I propose to take Questions Nos. 432 to 436, inclusive, and 440 together.
Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education & Inclusion, for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
The NCSE has responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children with special educational needs nationwide.
When the NCSE allocates a special needs assistant (SNA) post, the board of management as the employer, is responsible for filling the vacancy. 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, data on the number of SNAs employed is held at a local level.
The NCSE publish their allocation of SNA posts annually on their website. For ease of reference these allocations are broken down by county and school type. This data is available at the following link: www.ncse.ie/set-hours-and-sna-allocations
The vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. Where children with more complex needs require additional supports, special classes and special school places are provided.
There are three special schools in County Meath supporting 220 children. One of these schools, Cara Community Special School located in Enfield opened its doors on 10 September this year. It initially enrolled eighteen students.
Of the 3,337 special classes nationwide 156 are in County Meath, 116 at primary and 40 at post primary level with capacity for 948 students. 23 of these are new for the 2024/25 school year, 16 at primary level and 7 at post-primary level. The vast majority of these classes are autism classes and have a teacher/student ratio of 1:6. The information at the link provides a breakdown of these classes.
There are 139 mainstream schools in County Meath and of these 50% have at least one special class. This equated to 36% of primary schools and at post-primary level this increases to 78%.
As demand for new special classes at post-primary level is expected to increase significantly over the next few years, due to increasing demographics and increasing prevalence rates, my department and the NCSE have engaged with post-primary stakeholders in relation to the provision of special classes.
In October 2022, my department wrote to all post-primary schools requesting that each school begin planning to provide for up to four special classes to meet the needs of children progressing from primary school. Just last month my department issued a circular to all schools setting out new measures to support the forward planning of special education provision. Included in this circular was a reminder of the need for post primary schools to continue planning for this level of provision.
The table below provides an overview of the number of special classes in County Meath from 2019 to 2024.
|
School Year
|
2019/20
|
2020/21
|
2021/22
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
|
Primary
|
Not available
|
Not available
|
63
|
85
|
100
|
116
|
|
Post-Primary
|
Not available
|
Not available
|
22
|
25
|
32
|
40
|
|
Total
|
66
|
70
|
85
|
110
|
132
|
156
|
The second table provides a breakdown of these classes in Meath East for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 school years.
|
School Year
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
|
Primary
|
40
|
40
|
|
Post-Primary
|
17
|
20
|
|
Total
|
57
|
66
|
Almost 1,700 classes have been sanctioned by the NCSE over the last 5 years, in this time 11 new special schools have also been established and many more expanded. For this school year alone over 400 new special classes have been sanctioned.
Budget 2025 provides funding for another 400 special classes and 300 special school places nationwide and it is estimated that a similar level of provision will be needed each year for the next 3 years.
There remains a strong emphasis on forward planning. The NCSE have recruited additional special education needs organisers (SENOs), advisors and team managers. A total of 120 SENOs now operate nationwide, five of these are operating solely in County Meath. SENOs play an important role in ensuring there is adequate special educational provision within local areas and are currently visiting schools nationwide to conduct planning meetings. These visits will be key in terms of forward planning for the 2025/26 school year.
Parents seeking special class placements for their children are advised to contact the NCSE locally so that their needs can be taken into account for planning purposes. Local SENOs are available to assist and advise parents on their options and the supports available.
Special Classes in County Meath 2024-2025
