Applications for full-time or part-time Special Needs Assistant support to address the special care needs of children with disabilities.
1. Introduction
Special Needs Assistants (SNA) are recruited specifically to assist in the care of pupils with disabilities in an educational context. They may be appointed to a special school or
a mainstream national school to assist school authorities in making suitable provision for a pupil or pupils with special care needs arising from a disability. The allocation of
special needs assistant support may be made on a full- or part-time basis (e.g. an hour or more per day), and may be shared by named pupils for whom such support has been
allocated.
2. Duties of Special Needs Assistants
The duties of Special Needs Assistants are listed in Appendix I. Schools should note that the duties of Special Needs Assistants sanctioned by this Department are of a nonteaching
nature. Individual pupils with a general learning disability would not typically require the services of a Special Needs Assistant. Schools with pupils who have special
care needs arising from a disability and who also require additional academic input should consider applying for additional resource teaching provision.
3. Applications for a Special Needs Assistant should be considered where, for example, a pupil has a significant medical need for such assistance, a significant impairment of
physical or sensory function or where their behaviour is such that they are a danger to themselves or to other pupils. Pupils' needs could range from needing an assistant for a
short period each week, for example to help feed or change the pupil(s) or bring them to the toilet, to requiring a full-time assistant.
4. How do schools apply for a Special Needs Assistant post?
School authorities may apply for the services of a special needs assistant to assist in catering for a pupil or pupils with special care needs arising from a disability. Such an
application must be based on:
(a) a recommendation from the professional who assessed the child and who diagnosed the child's special care needs;
(b) evidence that describes the child's special care need, the reasons why the support of a special needs assistant is necessary and the benefits (s)he would derive from
such care support in a school setting;
(c) the signed certification of the professional who diagnosed the child's special care need.
The existence of a disability or syndrome does not necessarily mean that the pupil has a special care need.
It must be remembered when considering making an application for the support of a special needs assistant that a balance must be struck between allocating necessary care
support and the right of the child to acquire personal independence skills. For this reason, the professional who assessed the child is in the best position to advise on the
amount of support (full-time or a specific number of part-time hours).
5. In some cases, schools now seeking Special Needs Assistant Support may already be in receipt of some part-time allocations of such support. In these situations, the
Department will sanction a full-time post to replace the part-time hour allocations, where the total hours involved including those now being sought, warrant a full-time
post.
6. Completed application forms SER 1 and SER 2 (copies enclosed) should be forwarded
directly to:
Special Education Section 1,
Department of Education and Science,
Cornamaddy,
Athlone.
7. Enquiries relating to this Circular should be made to:
Special Education Section 1,
Telephone: 0902 - 74621 or (01) 8734700
Fax: 0902 - 76939
L. Kilroy,
Principal Officer February, 2002.