Govt not measuring special education need – centralised system needed
Govt not measuring special education need - centralised system needed - The Labour Party
Labour’s education spokesperson Eoghan Kenny TD has expressed his concern that Government will be unable to get to grips with the scale of the crisis in special education following the announcement of 36 new special classes today.
Deputy Kenny said:
“Government is lurching from one crisis to another when it comes to special education while school communities are struggling to keep up with the level of demand for supports in education.
“The Labour Party has long campaigned for a centralised system to the NCSE so that the State can have a clear picture of how many children need places, what type of places they need and where those places should be delivered.
“Right now, Government is making announcements blind without a true sense of the level of demand. While additional classes have been announced today, the Minister has failed to clarify what the long-term strategy is to address the massive shortfall in class places that we are expecting for the forthcoming school year.
“Just last month, after much push back from SNAs, school communities and opposition, Government u-turned on an effective cut on SNAs, with an announcement of an additional €19mn to fund this. Yet we are still awaiting the details on this, where this money will come from and whether SNAs and families will be back playing brinkmanship with Government the same time next year.
“SNAs, teachers, principals across the country are stretching every resource they have to help every child but they are getting little to no support from the Minister, her Department and this Government. There is far too much short-termism from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil when it comes to special education and every time, it is the children at the centre of this who are paying the price.”