Cuts to special needs teaching may be avoided next autumn

FEARED cuts to special needs teaching may be avoided next autumn, but another review to supports for children with learning difficulties could mean restrictions on help during the next school year.

A notice is to be issued to primary schools within days on how to allocate special needs teaching hours for children with more serious learning difficulties. It follows a freeze on the approval by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) of such positions since the start of April, after the Department of Education realised it was just 100 jobs short of a ceiling of 9,960 resource teachers under employment controls contained in the EU/IMF bailout deal.

It had been feared that special needs teaching hours would have to be shared among a rising number of pupils next year, or that those receiving resource teaching next autumn would be allocated reduced support.