The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) was set up to improve education services for people with special educational needs. 

We work to support an inclusive education system that enables students and young adults with special educational needs to achieve their potential. 

The Council was first established as an independent statutory body by order of the Minister for Education and Science in December 2003. 

• We plan, co-ordinate and review the provision of educational supports to support students with special educational needs in line with Department of Education and Youth policy.
• We provide the Minister for Education and Youth with policy advice on special education for students and young adults. Our advice is expert-led, independent and evidence-informed. 
• We do research on all aspects of special education.
• We provide information on special education to all who need it.

We run our services across different teams by region.

We list the teams below.

NCSE Teams

• Cavan Monaghan Leitrim
• Clare
• Cork (2 teams)
• Donegal
• Dublin (4 teams)
• Galway
• Kerry
• Kildare
• Laois Carlow Kilkenny
• Limerick
• Louth Meath
• Mayo Sligo
• Offaly Tipperary
• Roscommon Longford Westmeath
• Waterford Wexford
• Wicklow

• Special Education Teaching (SET)
• Access to Special Needs Assistants (SNA)
• Assistive technology like reading tools, writing aids, hearing and vision aids.
• School Transport
• School escorts
• Visiting teachers for students who are Blind or with Vison Impairments or students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing and students who are Deaf Blind

There are many types of school and classes that may suit you child. We call these ‘educational settings’ 

• Mainstream school with supports
• Mainstream special classes
• Special schools
• Home Tuition is available for students in certain circumstances

• You can contact your local special educational needs organiser (SENO) 
•  
  You can also check information on location of special classes. 

• Special schools support students with profound and complex special educational needs. 
   
  To get a place in a special school, a child must have a professional report stating that: 
  – The child has a special educational need 
  – The need is so complex a special school place is recommended 
   
  Special schools have a lower student-teacher ratio according to category of disability. This means that classes have small numbers of students. 
   
  See a map showing the location of special schools in your area. 

• SENOs co-ordinate the additional education supports that schools provide in line with Department of Education and Youth policy. 
   
  SENOs support parents and guardians by: 
  – Providing information 
  – Establishing special classes 
  – Engaging with other professionals working with children and young people 
   
  SENOs advise parents and guardians around what special classes, special schools and other educational supports are available. 
   
  SENOs process applications for transport and assistive technology and send to the Department of Education and Youth to process and approve. 
   
  Read more about SENOs. 

SENOs work within regional areas. Each school has an assigned SENO. 

• Contact NCSE head office at 01-6033346 and you will be put in touch with your SENO.
• View contact details for SENOs.
• View contact details for all regional staff.

Special needs assistants (SNAs) are additional school supports to assist children with special educational needs who also have significant care needs.  

SNAs help students to attend school and promote an inclusive class where lessons run smoothly for everyone. The SNA will work to help the student develop their independent living skills. 

In the NCSE, we allocate SNAs based on the care needs of all the students in the school. 

Your child’s school will recruit SNAs and decide how to use SNAs to support individual students.  

If a school believes its allocation of SNA doesn’t meet its needs, the school can apply to the NCSE for a review. 

You can read information on how a school can apply for a review of the SNA allocation 

You can also read our booklet for parents of children and young people with special educational needs

Allocating special education teachers to schools

The Department of Education and Youth decides the number of special education teachers (SET) based on the size of the school and the needs of the students. 

The school will consider a student’s learning needs when deciding how to use the SET hours. 

Access to SET is not based on a diagnosis of a particular disability.  

Your child may receive the additional teaching: 

– In the classroom

– In small sperate groups

– As one-to-one teaching

You can view Guidelines for primary schools supporting pupils with special educational needs. 

You can also see the Quick Reference Guide for Parents/Guardians (Primary) on Special Education Teaching Support (PDF) 

The Department of Education and Youth provides school transport services for children with special educational needs. The service is run by Bus Éireann. 

The student must attend the nearest special class or special school that can meet their special educational need. 

To apply 

The application starts with the school the child is enrolled or enrolling in. 

 The school then sends the application to the local SENO for processing. 

The SENO will: 

– Check that the application meets the Department of Education and Youth’s criteria

– Send the form to the Department

The Department will approve applications for school transport and Bus Eireann assesses the options available. 

Escort for student on bus 

As part of the application, the SENO may recommend an escort to go with the student, if they require that support. 

You can read more on our page on school transport.  

The management of your child’s school is responsible for applying for assistive technology for your child. 

An application must include a recent assessment report from a relevant professional such as a speech and language therapist or an occupational therapist.  

The assessment should detail: 

– The nature and extent of the student’s disability

– The equipment most appropriate

The school then sends the application to the local special educational needs organiser (SENO). 

The SENO will: 

– Checks the application to see if it meets the criteria

– Sends the form to the Department of Education and Youth

The Department approves applications for assistive technology and informs the school of the decision. 

You can also access assistive technology through the Enable Ireland AT Loan Library and your local library.  

What is the role of the visiting teacher? 

Visiting teachers provide long-term support to children, families and schools. They can support your child all the way through their time in education.  

They work to: 

– Provide home support for children who are not yet attending school

– Support pre-schools to apply for support under AIM (Access Inclusion Model)

– Support post-primary pupils who require a reasonable accommodation in state exams and the disability access route to education (DARE) 

– Recommend assistive technology for students

They also prepare transfer reports to enable children to transition (move) from: 

– Pre-school to primary

– Primary to post-primary

– Post primary to third level

Visiting teachers provide support for: 

– Students who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing

– Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired

You can read more on our visiting teacher page. 

You can view contact details for your local visiting teacher. 

Advisors work to: 

– Provide professional development for teachers and other school staff

– Develop useful resource materials for school

Read more about the role of a NCSE advisor. 

The HSE provides health based supports through their local disability network services.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provide psychology supports to schools.

The continuum of support framework assist schools in identifying and responding to the needs of students. This framework recognises that special educational needs occur along a continuum. This means they can range from mild to severe, and from temporary to long term. 

Students may require different levels of support depending on their educational needs. 

You can read more about the continuum of support here

The school inclusion model is a pilot project in 75 schools in Kildare, Wicklow and South Dublin.  

The project aims to build schools’ ability to include all students in the life of the school. 

This is done by providing educational, psychological and health-based supports in addition to HSE supports.  

The supports are usually based in the school and include: 

– Occupational therapy

– Speech and language therapy

– Behaviour practitioners