Louth TD tells Dáil that SNAs need to be "looked after" amid review U-turn

Sinn Féín TD for Louth Ruairí Ó Murchú has told the Dáíl that Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) need to be looked after ‘because they
look after their children’,

The comments came in a debate that followed the government U-turn on a review that seen around 200 schools informed it would have its SNAs reallocated elsewhere.

The Sinn Féin spokesperson on disability spoke about his own
experience of the work that SNAs do by speaking about his 17-year-old
son, Toirleach during his party’s motion on the issue last week.
Deputy Ó Murchú said: “I welcome the pressure that was brought by
SNAs and others on the Government that has led to this pause and
reprieve, but it is not a solution.

“We need to see the ins and outs of the workforce development plan. We need to see a proper, workable redeployment scheme."

“We have to deal with the failures of the 2014 circular. This is clear to
anyone who has heard the testimonies from schools where children
were to lose SNA support if they did not fit into primary care. That is the
reality. That is what was happening”.

Deputy Ó Murchú said it would not have been possible for his son to have gone to mainstream school without the support of SNAs.

 “He was in a language class in St. Joseph’s and later in
mainstream. He could not have done that without what the SNAs did."

“It was not always plain sailing. In fairness to my wife, she probably
carried the slack for a lot of it. At this point in time, he is in transition
year, working on business development projects and going away on
trips."

“He would be able to do none of this, and he would not actually be in
education to the same degree, without the SNAs."

“We need to recognise what they do. We need to put a proper
framework in place."

“The nicest thing I can say about the communications is that they were
an absolute mess. We need to look after those people because they look
after our children,” he said. 

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Minister of State at the Department of Education, Michael Moynihan reiterated that there would be no reduction in SNAs in September, and the government will honour any increases that had been indicated. 

He said SNAs are the "heartbeat of our school communities" and provide "essential care and support that allow students with additional educational needs to participate fully in the school life."