Potential Special Needs Assistant (SNA’s) cuts have sent a shockwave through the Irish educational system as towns that have seen little political action since the civil war suddenly experience large scale protests over SNA numbers and a potential cut back. This fact alone shows how crucial these resources are for our schools. These scenes were enough to spook the government into pausing a review into next year’s allocations which would have resulted in substantial decreases for many schools. The original plans would have seen approximately 200 schools lose SNA posts with many more not getting the increased staffing they would have been hoping for.
How much longer can schools be expected to engage in a constant battle for resources? Every year since the Covid crisis there has been controversy over resource allocation issues within the special education space, this year has unfortunately been no different and it seems schools may finally be at their wits end. It is clear that the government has no plan and no long term ambition to support students with extra needs in our schools. The government continues to keep the focus on what the minimum number of resources they can give schools is without inciting a riot.
They seem to have realised that they have gone slightly too far this time but what is going to happen next year? This cut reversal implemented by the government is temporary, lasting just a year. A one-off €19 million allocation was made to maintain the 500 posts that were supposed to be cut but again what happens when that temporary funding is exhausted? This is a problem of the governments making, they continually claim that special education is an extreme challenge for the Department of Education but a bit of extra money and increased support for SNA’s and Teachers is all it takes. €19 million is a lot of money but it is not crazy money for a government running a surplus in the billions, we are a wealthy country but our public services are not treated that way.
Several hundred people gathered outside the Dáil and thousands more gathered in towns and cities nationwide to protest the situation and the opposition immediately jumped on it. Sinn Féin have submitted an emergency motion on the subject of SNA allocation, the opposition bye-election candidates in Galway and Dublin attended the protests, and the offices of government TDs have been the sites of several protests. This is threatening to become the defining political issue of the upcoming bye-elections and one of the most defining political issues of the year. A pause may not be enough to stem the backlash as this may finally be where the pot boils over, special needs education and education more generally has been an intense political issue for many years but as the problems mount the question has to be asked, how long until we reach the point of no return for the government on this issue?
In the Dáil, Sinn Féin Leader Mary Lou McDonald said that “a pause is no good to anyone” and that people are rightfully fearful and angry about the proposed allocations. In response, the Taoiseach said that it is not plausible that there wouldn’t be reviews. This viewpoint ignores the reality of the situation, reviews are inevitable and necessary but they should never result in the loss of resources for students and schools that depend on them. Martin bragged that two thirds of schools involved in the review would see no change or an increase in their allocation, but that ignores the one third of schools that were set to see a reduction in numbers. It additionally ignores the hundreds of schools which were seeking additional support and did not receive an allocation.
Since this exchange the Tánaiste has come out and said that the government “got this wrong”, indicating an attempt by the government to backtrack on this issue. There was also an acknowledgement of work done by schools, SNA’s, and Trade Unions on resource allocation. This acknowledgment and the overall response from the government has simply shifted the blame, there has been a significant erosion of trust between schools and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) who originally created the review and recommendations proposed for implementation. Fórsa has publicly stated that if the government cannot trust the NCSE’s review process, they cannot expect SNAs and schools to continue to trust them either. This has been further exasperated as it has been revealed that the government does not even know where the funds to pause these plans will come from.
It is clear that the government is scrambling to backtrack and cover up yet another political embarrassment but only time will tell if it will work. For now the political fallout is unclear but as opposition parties continue to circle and as parents and schools become even more annoyed we may well see long term consequences for the government if they do not come up with a viable permanent solution sooner rather than later.
