School News

Meet the Additional Needs Assistant Team at St. Luke’s National School!

St. Luke’s has a strong team of ten ANA’s. Our dedicated team are a constant support to children in our school community. They are a friendly and approachable team, who greet all of the children with a smile as they arrive at school each morning.

Their role is to assist with care needs so that learning can go uninterrupted and teaching can go smoothly! They are key to creating our inclusive environment here in St. Luke’s.

ANA’s work with the teaching team and parents to create Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant Time-based (SMART) targets to support the children in their care, to achieve positive outcomes. ANA’s promote independence of care needs, at a rate that is comfortable to the child.

Some children are lucky enough to have ANA support throughout their school career, others may have brief check-ins while the rest with ANA access will have assistance throughout the day for different periods of time.

With a current school population of 570 students, our team of 10 ANA’s can only stretch so far. This is why we are currently undergoing an ANA exceptional review through the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), the body who decide where care needs are unmet, and further ANA staff are needed. We hope that the visiting team of Special Educational Needs Officers (SENO’s) will support our application for more ANA staff.

Note: Ultimately, our ANA team offer discrete support, to enhance your child’s school experience. They offer a safe space for your child to feel included and support children with a bespoke action plan, so that they can thrive!

Children who go for early intervention from the ANA team, in the first few years of primary school have a greater chance of developing the skills needed to go through the school themselves independent of support for much of their time in primary school.

Could any of the care needs listed in the box below be a barrier to your child’s learning? If so, reach out and let us know!

List of Care Needs may include: toileting, feeding, administration of medicine, assistance with mobility and orientation, assisting teachers to provide supervision, non-nursing care needs, care needs involving withdrawal of the student from class, moving and lifting, operation of hoists and equipment, assistance with severe communication difficulties, arising from physical, visual, hearing, and/or social-emotional difficulties, Behaviour of Concern. If you are curious about the role of ANA and think your child might benefit from ANA support, ask to speak with a member of School Management Team, to discuss how we can assist your child on their primary educational journey.

Contact: 01-8856015
Email: info@stlukesns.ie