Understanding Ireland’s SEN System: A Guide for Families

If you’re a parent of a child with special educational needs in Ireland, navigating the system can feel overwhelming. Unlike the UK’s EHCP framework, Ireland’s SEN system operates without legally enforceable individual plans — but it does have dedicated structures for support. Here’s how it all works.

The Key Bodies

National Council for Special Education (NCSE)

The NCSE is the central body responsible for coordinating special education services in Ireland. It allocates resources to schools, provides policy advice to the Minister for Education, and operates a network of Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) who work directly with schools and families at a local level.

Department of Education

The Department sets policy, provides funding, and issues circulars that govern how schools deliver SEN support. It works alongside the NCSE but retains ultimate responsibility for the legislative framework.

The EPSEN Act: A Promise Partially Kept

The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004 was landmark legislation that promised every child with SEN an individual education plan, an independent appeals process, and a right to assessment. However, key sections of the Act — including the right to individual education plans — have never been commenced, over two decades after its passage.

This means that, unlike UK EHCPs or US IEPs, Irish families do not have a legally enforceable right to an individual plan that specifies the support their child must receive. Support is allocated at the school level rather than the individual level.

Special Needs Assistants (SNAs)

Ireland’s SNA scheme provides dedicated care support staff in schools. SNAs help children with:

• Personal care needs (feeding, toileting, mobility)
• Behaviour management and emotional regulation
• Supervision during breaks and transitions
• Supporting participation in classroom activities

SNAs are notteaching staff — they provide care support so that children can access education. As of 2024/25, the NCSE allocates a baseline SNA number to each school, with a review process for schools that need additional support. The allocation is reviewed annually by SENOs.

Special Education Teacher (SET) Allocation

Since 2017, Ireland has used a SET allocation modelthat gives each school a baseline allocation of additional teaching hours based on the school’s overall educational profile — including size, standardised test results, and social disadvantage indicators.

This replaced the old system where individual children needed a professional diagnosis to access resource teaching hours. The new model aims to provide support without requiring a diagnostic label, recognising that many children need help before or without a formal diagnosis.

Special Classes and Special Schools

Ireland operates a continuum of provision:

• Mainstream classes with SNA and SET support
• Special classes within mainstream schools (typically 6 students with an SNA and a specialist teacher)
• Special schools for children with complex needs who require a specialist setting

The NCSE has significantly expanded the number of special classes in recent years, but demand consistently outstrips supply — particularly for autism-specific classes. Many families report long waiting lists and difficulty securing a place.

Getting an Assessment

Assessment of educational needs in Ireland can come through:

• NEPS (National Educational Psychological Service)— provides psychological assessments in schools, but capacity is limited and waiting times can be long
• HSE (Health Service Executive)— provides clinical assessments for conditions such as autism, ADHD, and intellectual disability through Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNTs)
• Private assessment— many families pay for private assessments due to public waiting times that can exceed 2–3 years

Ireland vs. UK: Key Differences

For families who have experience with both systems, the differences are significant:

• Individual plans: UK has legally enforceable EHCPs; Ireland does not have enforceable individual plans
• Funding: UK allocates funding per child via EHCPs; Ireland allocates resources at the school level
• Appeals: UK has the SEND Tribunal; Ireland lacks an equivalent independent appeals process for education support
• Age range:UK EHCPs cover 0–25; Ireland’s education system supports to 18 (with some provision to 22 in special schools)
• Health integration: UK EHCPs combine education, health, and social care; Ireland keeps education and health services largely separate

How Trisende Helps Irish Families

Trisende is actively mapping Ireland’s SEN landscape — including GP practices, healthcare facilities, schools, and support organisations. Our goal is to give Irish families the same visibility that UK families are gaining through Trisende’s 7M+ directory listings: a single place to find the right school, the right service, and the right professional.

Ireland’s SEN system has many strengths — dedicated SNAs, a growing network of special classes, and a Department that is increasing investment. What it lacks is the digital infrastructure to tie it all together. That’s exactly what Trisende is building.