AQW 26753/22-27

Mr Nick Mathison
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 08/05/2025
Answered On Date: 19/05/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education to outline (i) how many staff make up the Education Authority's Specialist Settings Support Team; and (ii) his assessment of the current level of resourcing for this team in relation to the demand for this service.

Answer:

The Education Authority (EA) has advised that:

A core team of specialist staff is in place and recruitment is ongoing to add an additional 15 staff to enhance and stabilise current support, bringing the total to 63 full time equivalent staff. This will address the growing needs and ensure that all existing specialist classes are adequately supported by September 2025.

The service is ensuring alignment with the recommendations laid out in the recently published SEN Reform Agenda and will focus on ensuring that all specialist provisions in Northern Ireland receive the necessary support to thrive. To achieve this, the recruitment process noted above is ongoing.