Special needs education

Information

 Special needs education means the special educational arrangements which are in place for people with disabilities.  All children – including children with disabilities and children with special needs – have a constitutional right to free primary education.  Children with special educational needs have the right to free primary education up to age 18. Further information about the law on special needs education is in More about this topic. In the Irish Constitution there is information about the role of the State in providing education and the rights of parents.

You are a person with special educational needs if your capacity to participate in and benefit from education is restricted due to an enduring physical, sensory, mental health or learning disability.   The policy is to provide special needs education in mainstream settings as far as possible.  The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004 (pdf) provides that children are to be educated in an inclusive setting unless this would not be in the best interests of the child or the effective provision of education for other children in mainstream education. 

Education for children with special needs may be provided in ordinary classes in mainstream schools, in special classes in mainstream schools or in special schools. 

Education in mainstream schools

Many children with disabilities or special needs are in ordinary classes in mainstream schools. They may get help from learning support and resource teachers and from special needs assistants (SNAs). These supports for children with special educational needs are available in primary schools and post-primary schools.   

Special classes in mainstream schools

Some children attend special classes in mainstream schools. These classes generally have low pupil/teacher ratios.

Special schools

There are over 107 special schools catering for particular types of disability and special needs as follows:  

Schools for students with mild general learning disability (30)

Schools for students with moderate general learning disability (33)

Schools for students with severe & profound general learning disability (6)

Schools for students with emotional and behavioural disturbance (10)

Schools for students with severe emotional and behavioural disturbance (9)

Schools for students with physical disability (7)

Hospital schools (6)

Schools for students with hearing impairment (3)

Schools for students of Traveller families (3)

School for students with multiple disabilities (1)

Schools for students with visual impairment (1)

Schools for students with reading disability (4)

School for students with autism (5)

Schools for young offenders and disadvantaged students (11)

You can find a list of special schools on the website of the Department of Education and Science.

Special arrangements for particular disabilities

Students with specific leaning disabilities may be able to get an exemption from some of the usual educational requirements. For example, if you have dyslexia you may be exempt from the requirement to study Irish and/or a continental language.

Education Plans

Under the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004 each child assessed with a special educational need should have a personal education plan. This system is not yet in place but its implementation is being co-ordinated by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) which has published Guidelines for the Individual Education Plan process (pdf). The NCSE has also published Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the EPSEN Act 2004 (pdf).  This sets out how the Act can be implemented. However there is currently (2009) no date for the implementation of the assessment of need and individual education plans.

Transport

Special transport arrangements, including escorts and safety harnesses are available for children with disabilities attending school.

Organisations and statutory bodies with a role in special needs education

The National Council for Special Education

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is a statutory body with particular functions in relation to special needs education. Its main functions are:

• Planning and co-ordinating the provision of education and support services to children with special educational needs (in conjunction with schools and the Health Service Executive (HSE)
• Planning the implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Needs Act – see above
• Disseminating information on best practice concerning the education of children with special educational needs
• Providing information to parents in relation to the entitlements of children with special educational needs
• Assessing and reviewing resources required by children with special educational needs 
• Ensuring that progress of students with special educational needs is monitored and reviewed
• Reviewing education provision for adults with disabilities
• Advising educational institutions on best practice
• Consulting with voluntary bodies
• Advising the Minister for Education and Science on matters relating to special education
• Conducting research and publishing findings

Special Educational Needs Organisers

The NCSE employs Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) who are responsible for allocating additional teaching and other resources to support the special educational needs of children with disabilities at local level.  There are currently (April 2007) 80 SENOs employed all around the country.

SENOs are the point of contact for parents/guardians and schools. Their main activities are:

• Processing applications from all schools for resource teacher support in respect of children with low-incidence disabilities such as moderate general learning disabilities, visual or hearing impairments, physical disabilities or autism, and deciding on the level of support appropriate to the school
• Processing applications from second-level schools for resource teacher support in respect of children with high-incidence disabilities such as mild general learning disability and deciding on the level of support appropriate to the school
• Processing applications from schools and deciding on the appropriate level of special needs assistant support for children with disabilities 
• Examining applications from all schools for special equipment/assistive technology (decisions on this are made by the Department of Education and Science)
• Examining applications from schools for transport arrangements for children with disabilities and making recommendations to the Department of Education and Science 
• Identifying the appropriate educational setting for individual children with special educational needs

A list of SENOs is available on the NCSE's website (pdf).

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment

The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) is a statutory body. One of its functions is to advise the Minister for Education and Science on the curriculum and syllabus requirements of students with disabilities or with special educational needs.  The Council has published Guidelines for Teachers of Students with General Learning Disabilities. 

The Council is currently working on an initiative to address the needs of students at junior cycle level whose learning needs are focused primarily on personal, social and vocational skills.

The NCCA is also currently developing guidelines for teachers of exceptionally able students.

The Special Education Support Service (SESS)

The Special Education Support Service (SESS) was established by the Department of Education and Science to manage, co-ordinate and develop a range of supports in response to the identified training needs of teachers.  The SESS, which is hosted in Cork Education Centre, provides a nationwide service to teachers and special needs assistants.
The aim of the service is to enhance the quality of teaching and learning with particular reference to the education of children with special needs. 

Among other things, it currently subsidises courses on the following topics: Dyslexia, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA), Autism, Inclusion, Managing Student Behaviour, Gifted and Talented Students and Teaching Troubled Children.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS)

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) is an executive agency of the Department of Education and Science. NEPS provides psychological services to primary and post-primary schools, both state and private.

NEPS processes applications for “reasonable accommodation” in the State examination arrangements for children with disabilities. 

Where to apply