National Council for Special Education

179. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Education and Youth her plans to address the concerns raised by parents and clinicians following the publication of the SNA review process for 2025-2026 guideline by the NCSE (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [55986/25]

421. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth if the NCSE engaged in meaningful consultation with schools, SNAs, and parents before finalising the 2025-2026 SNA review process guidelines; if so, to provide details of that consultation; and if not, the reasons key stakeholders were excluded. [54716/25]

422. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will consider extending or reopening the application window for school-led SNA reviews beyond the current period 15 September to 24 October; and if flexibility will be introduced to accommodate mid-year applications in cases of new or emerging needs. [54717/25]

423. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth to clarify the definitions used in the NCSE's 2025-2026 guidelines for 'complex care needs' and 'level 3 care needs'; and if she will commit to co-developing the criteria with practitioners and parents to ensure fair and inclusive application. [54718/25]

424. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth the reason the 2025-2026 SNA guidelines appear to exclude or deprioritise behavioural care needs; and if she will direct the NCSE to explicitly recognise behavioural and emotional needs as part of complex care needs requiring SNA support. [54719/25]

425. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of concerns that the unification of SNA allocations across mainstream and special classes may result in a net reduction in support for students in autism classes; and if she will ensure that these allocations reflect the higher and distinct needs in those settings. [54720/25]

426. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she has considered the potential for internal conflict within schools arising from the redeployment of SNAs between autism classes and mainstream settings; and the safeguards in place to prevent the erosion of specialist supports. [54723/25]

427. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth if schools and staff have been given adequate time and training to implement the 'Relate' document, which is now a required component of the SNA review process; and if she will delay enforcement of the requirements until proper capacity building has occurred. [54724/25]

428. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth the training or guidance which has been issued to schools and SNAs to assist them in navigating the new SNA review process; and if additional supports or professional development resources will be made available. [54725/25]

429. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth the appeals process for SNA review decisions under the 2025-2026 guidelines; and to confirm that the process will be transparent, timely, and accessible to schools and families. [54726/25]

430. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her Department is monitoring the impact of the revised SNA review process on school staffing levels, student wellbeing, and inclusion outcomes; and if she will publish impact assessment reports. [54727/25]

431. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth to respond to concerns from the education sector that the new SNA guidelines appear focused more on rationing or gatekeeping resources than supporting students; and the steps she is taking to protect children's access to essential SNA supports. [54728/25]

451. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of the delays in decision-making by the NCSE following SERC reviews, particularly in cases where schools have clearly demonstrated urgent need for additional SNA support; the steps being taken to ensure timely responses to such applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [55001/25]

454. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Education and Youth the oversight mechanism in place to ensure that NCSE decisions regarding SNA allocations are transparent, timely and responsive to the complex needs of pupils in autism-specific classes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [55004/25]

473. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Education and Youth the reason it is acceptable that level 1 needs, as identified and prescribed by qualified professionals, are not recognised within the new NCSE framework; the reason professional reports are no longer required as part of the process; who will determine the needs of a child has under this system; and if she will make a statement on …

183. Deputy Denise Mitchell asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will immediately intervene in the case of a child (details supplied) who has been unable to secure an appropriate place in a secondary school for this coming year, despite extensive engagement by the parents with the National Council for Special Education and CDNT teams; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5…

429. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her attention has been drawn to concerns related to recently published SNA Guidelines by the National Council for Special Education (details supplied); the actions she will take to address these concerns; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51243/25]

437. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Education and Youth the stakeholders the NCSE consult with when creating the SNA review guidelines 2025/2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51307/25]

438. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her Department have consulted with schools in relation to unifying the SNA allocations for the academic year 2025/2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51308/25]

441. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Education and Youth to provide all correspondence between the NCSE and her Department in relation to the SNA review guidelines 2025/2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51311/25]

330. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth for an update on an NCSE matter (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50365/25]

1197. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of times the NCSE has directed a school to enrol a particular child or young person with special educational needs under section 67 of the Education Act 1998 within the last six months; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43053/25]

1198. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of the children who had a section 67 designation notice made for them under the Education Act 1998 who had issued legal proceedings or had threatened to issue legal proceedings; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43054/25]

1306. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of appeals to the NCSE, by county; and the number of successful appeals over each of the past five years [44253/25]

386. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Education and Youth the reason there is currently no appeals mechanism available to schools via the NCSE website; when it will be available; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35926/25]