Trina's Thoughts
Budget 2026 was announced on Tuesday, 7th October 2025. I've shared the key features and my thoughts below.
Capitation/Funding
Key Features:
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€50 capitation increase per pupil.
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This is a permanent increase.
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No “Cost of Living” grant this year, meaning an effective increase of €14 per...
Over the past week, the advocacy campaign on the SNA Review has received responses from the NCSE (Helen Walsh, Head of Inclusion and Education Support Services), various government politicians, and the Minister for Education, Helen McEntee.
On the surface, these responses look reassuring. But read ...
The new guidelines for SNA review for 25/26 have been released. You can find them here along with other documentation Guidelines for SNA review.
*Here is a template for staff or parents to use to advocate on this issue with unions, representatives and politicians.
Key changes:
- The guideline ...
You can read the circular in full here:https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/circulars/approach-and-key-measures-to-support-the-forward-planning-for-special-education-provision-for-the-20262027-school-year-and-beyond/
The focus is on special classes and special schools
Here is a summary fo...
73 schools across 19 counties have offered to support schools opening a new Autism class in September, via advice or school visits.
A huge thank you to each and every one that offered in such a busy time in schools. Your experience and expertise will be invaluable to those starting out.
Take th...
The next steps in the new curriculum rollout were published today. There was also a document specifically for FAQs about MFL. I've linked both docs below. Timeline and details summarised below.
Documents
Key Points
- Moving away from the support day ...
⭐ Key Points ⭐
- Mainstream class size staying at 23:1 for the 3rd year running. No changes to mainstream staffing schedule (Appendix A).
- No change to numbers for Admin P or DP (Appendix B)
- SET reviewed and changes made. Same criteria as last year. No change to model to include complex needs, dev ...
The long awaiting SET circular and guidelines were released last week, on the 10th December. There are a lot of documents and resources coming with it so I'll try to summarise the key points of each. The links to all the documents are at the bottom of this post. They include the circular, the update...
Relevant Documents:
Please note, the INTO will host a supplementary panel webinar on Tuesday, 26th November at 3.30pm for members. You can register here. INTO need to be your go to for any specific supplementary panel questions:
What is the sup...
In line with the new procedures for applying for Autism classes, I've drafted a letter for the parents on our waiting list from last year and who are interested in applying this year.
You can find a copy of letter here. Edit to change the details for your own school context.
Attendance reporting often causes confusion and stress for Principals and parents. Here are explainers are the mechanisms for Principals, and a template to share with parents to ensure they also understand the process.
For Principals: Attendance Processes & Legal Requirements
The Legal Requirement...
In my first year as Principal, 2018, a colleague in my IPPN cluster group ask if I was going to the IPPN conference. I was clueless but knew I needed to build a network and said sure! I signed up, it was in City West, and off I went absolutely naive to what I was walking into. Walking in that first ...
