Debate contribution: SEN Reform and Classroom Assistant Provision

Debate contribution by Mr Daniel McCrossan on 9 March 2026.

MLA

Mr Daniel McCrossan

Party at the time

Social Democratic and Labour Party

Date

9 March 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Opposition Business

Heading

SEN Reform and Classroom Assistant Provision

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5453627

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. I thank all the Members who contributed to today's important debate. It is important to be clear from the outset that the debate is really about our children who have special educational needs in schools right across Northern Ireland, the support that they rely on, and the classroom assistants who make that support possible. Across Northern Ireland, thousands of classroom assistants go into our schools every morning knowing that their work can change a child's life for the better. They help children to communicate, to manage anxiety and overwhelming emotions, to participate in lessons that might otherwise feel impossible and to feel that they belong in the classroom. For many children with special educational needs, a classroom assistant is not simply an extra pair of hands but the difference between the child thriving in school or falling behind. They are often the trusted adult who gives parents reassurance that their child will be supported throughout the school day. The scale of need in our schools is significant. According to the Department of Education, across our schools, more than 70,000 children are now identified as having special educational needs. Some 27,000 children require a formal SEN statement, and that number has increased by over 50% in the past six years. Supporting those pupils are more than 12,000 classroom assistants, working in schools across our communities. Those figures tell us something very clearly. The SEN system is under enormous pressure. Families, teachers and classroom assistants know it. Parents wait far too long for assessments and children far too long for statements. We know that many children now wait years for a statement, despite the legal target of 26 weeks. Some families wait for two years or more for support that their child is entitled to. It is not acceptable. Reform may well be necessary, but reform in education must be built on trust, partnership and engagement, and that is what the Minister continues to get wrong. The problem here is that the Minister appears to be determined to push through sweeping changes without securing the necessary trust. Parents are rightly worried, as are classroom assistants, trade unions and teachers. Instead of pausing to listen to those vital voices, the Minister appears to be determined to press ahead regardless. That is not how meaningful reform is delivered. The proposals that we are discussing involve moving away from existing models of one-to-one pupil support. We are told that the reform agenda is about flexibility and delivering new ways of delivering support, but parents are asking a very simple question: if the support that their child currently relies on disappears, what will replace it? Where is the reassurance that the new system will work any better? Given the history, it is difficult to see how we can have trust in such a system. Where is the evidence that the reforms will improve outcomes for the children who need support the most? When parents hear about changes that appear to remove direct support, the fear is very real, and it is that their child will be the one who falls through the cracks. That fear cannot simply be dismissed. It must be taken seriously. The SDLP will not support the DUP amendment, because it attempts to present the reforms as straightforward, evidence-led decisions that should simply be accepted, but if that were truly the case, we would not be hearing such alarm from parents, classroom assistants, teachers and education professionals across Northern Ireland. If the people who are expected to deliver the reforms do not have confidence in them, it is not just a simple issue. Rather, it is a flashing warning light that the Minister must heed. Leadership sometimes requires taking difficult decisions, but it also requires leaders to bring people with them, to listen to parents, to listen to the workforce and to engage meaningfully with those who deliver support in our schools every single day. Classroom assistants are the backbone of support for many children with special educational needs. They provide learning and emotional support, help children manage their behavioural and communication challenges and help teachers deliver lessons in classrooms where every single child deserves attention. Too often, they feel that their voices are ignored when major decisions about the future of the system are being made. Reform cannot succeed if the workforce that is responsible for delivering it feels sidelined. Across the House today, there has been broad consensus on the important work that classroom assistants carry out, but there is also consensus that the Minister is pressing on with reform and not listening to those at the coalface. For that reason, many Members will not support the amendment. I hope, however, that they will support the motion.

792 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:06 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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