(UK) NI: "Every school MUST have SPED classes: "demand 'grows exponentially'"
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Feb 25, 2026, Belfast Telegraph: Every school in NI told to set up special needs classes by Education Minister as demand ‘grows exponentially’
All schools in Northern Ireland have been told they will have to set up classes for children with special education needs (SEN).
It comes as the Department of Education seeks to find the necessary places for the growing number of pupils in need of the assistance in mainstream schools.
Minister Paul Givan asked schools to step forward last year to facilitate demand by introducing special education classes, known as SPIMS. And while some schools did, not all answered the call.
Mr Givan has now said “a more direct approach is considered necessary”.
Currently, only around a quarter of all mainstream schools have classes for those with SEN.
But in a letter to all school leaders, Mr Givan said he required “all mainstream schools” to work with the Education Authority (EA) to put the provision in place.
The EA said: “Making specialist provision a standard feature of mainstream schools is essential”, warning there is a projected shortfall of around 400 school places for children with SEN for the 2026/27 school year.
In his letter, Mr Givan said the “need for all types of SEN provision has grown exponentially in recent years and is projected to continue to rise”.
“All schools have a role to play in meeting the needs of this changing demographic,” he informed school leaders.
“To meet future demand and ensure that children do not have to travel unacceptably long distances to access appropriate placements, I am now requiring all mainstream schools which the EA considers suitable to facilitate specialist provision to engage constructively with them to put it in place,” he said, adding there would be support available for schools to set up the classes.
“Meeting the needs of children and young people with SEN is one of the most pressing challenges facing educational systems across many countries. I am determined that we in Northern Ireland will rise to the challenge collectively.”. . . .
Last September, 34,011 pupils in Northern Ireland had a statement of SEN, an increase of 85% in 10 years, according to the EA.
Last week, the EA announced changes to the classroom assistant system which would focus on needs, with statements of Send specifying “functional needs and the specialist actions required”, and school leaders determining “how to deliver support”.
In the Assembly this week, Mr Givan acknowledged that Northern Ireland is experiencing “similar challenges” to England “with rising levels of need, increasing expenditure and limited improvement in outcomes for children”.
“Initial indications are that Send reforms in England align closely with the direction of travel that’s already established here in Northern Ireland in the Send reform agenda, and also the five-year delivery plan, which I published last February,” he said. . . .
Last January, it was projected that by 2032, an extra 1,648 special education places in schools will be required in Northern Ireland, raising the number to 3,584 in mainstream schools.
That rise is despite the projection that primary schools will need 14,158 fewer places overall in 10 years’ time.
The EA had said that “ultimately, every school in Northern Ireland needs to look at how to adjust” to the changing landscape.
