Schools not consulted on special class plan, Soc Dems say

The Social Democrats have said the government has jumped the gun on a key education issue.

Last week, the government announced that there will be more “inclusive special classes” in mainstream schools.

Per the Soc Dems, however, the announcement was made “without clarity or engagement” with schools.

Party spokesperson on education, TD Jen Cummins, said she was supportive of special education provision being expanded in principle, but said the government plan was lacking in detail and was announced without consultation.

The announcement said that there would be 45 new special classes for the 2026/27 school year in schools across Ireland, with five pilot “inclusive” classes intended to allow students to move between mainstream and specialist classes during the school day.

The announcement forms part of a wider package of 45 new special classes for the 2026/27 school year, including five pilot “inclusive” classes intended to allow students to move between mainstream and specialist settings during the school day.

The Dublin South Central TD said the policy has been announced “without clarity or proper consultation” and does not answer “very basic questions that schools, parents and professionals need addressed.”

“The model raises immediate concerns about how it will operate in practice and whether it reflects the diverse needs of children across the system,” she said.

Cummins noted that there is a growing pattern in how special classes are being developed, with the Irish education system focusing on students on the autism spectrum.

While good in princple, notes Cummins, there are other students with other additional educational needs that are not being addressed.

“The announcement risks causing further confusion rather than delivering genuine inclusion,” she said.

She questioned, “was any consideration given to designing these as broader SEN classes rather than restricting enrolment to autism? Were schools actually consulted on this model, and did they request it? Is this a pilot, and, if so, what are the timelines and how will success be measured? Has the additional data the government claimed to have collected through the parents portal been used to inform these decisions?”

The Soc Dems TD said there is “a contradiction” at the heart of current policy.

“We are being told on the one hand that a formal diagnosis will not be required for children to access supports at primary level, yet at the same time we are seeing the continued rollout of classes that appear to depend on autism-specific criteria,”

She criticised what she called an “inconsistency” and that it needed to be addressed “clearly and transparently.”

Cummins noted that the autism charity AsIAm were also not consulted during this process, which goes against the government’s pledge to improve education for people on the autism spectrum.

“You cannot build an inclusive education system without actually including the people who deliver and rely on it,” she said.

“The Minister of Education must urgently provide clarity and commit to a more transparent and collaborative approach. If this model is to work, it must be clearly defined, properly resourced, and developed in partnership with those on the ground. Right now, that simply has not happened.”