Fri Sep 20 08:23:06 UTC 2024: ## Minister Foley Pushes for Major Special Needs Education Boost in Budget
Education Minister Norma Foley is seeking a significant increase in funding for special needs education in the upcoming budget, with a focus on hiring 1,500 additional Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) and establishing 350 new special classes.
Currently, there are 21,000 SNAs and 3,400 special classes within the Irish education system. Each special class requires two SNAs and a dedicated special education teacher to support the six pupils enrolled.
Minister Foley has highlighted the need to prioritize special education, noting that €2.7bn of the Department of Education’s budget is already allocated to this sector. The additional SNAs would be employed to support both the new special classes and existing mainstream classes with students requiring extra educational assistance.
“The hope is that the case for these crucial resources will be strongly made,” a source close to the minister stated. Minister Foley emphasized the importance of “equality of opportunity” for all students and expressed her intention to secure the necessary funds to meet this growing need.
The minister also expressed her desire to expand the free schoolbook scheme, which was rolled out for junior cycle secondary students this September, to include senior cycle students.
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