A few acronyms used in education that you might find useful:

Special Educational Needs or more widely used today, Additional Education Needs. This acronym is used to identify children that require additional support in school for any number of reasons.

Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator - You will find the SENCo in school. They are usually a member of teaching staff, and often sit with the Senior Leadership Team. They are responsible for children with Special or Additional Education Needs.

SNA

Special Needs Assistant. The SNA is a key component of support for a child with FASD in school. It is quite common in larger schools for there to be a pool of SNA's that your child will work with throughout the week. This helps your child so they do not become reliant on one individual.

NCSE

National Council for Special Education. The NCSE was established in 2003 to improve the delivery of education services to people with special education needs (SEN) arising from disabilities, with a particular emphasis on children.

Special Education Needs Officer. A local service is provided through a national network of SENO's who interact with parents and schools and liaise with the Health Service Executive (HSE) in providing resources to support children with special educational needs.

The Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service. This is part of the HSE and often requires a referral from your Doctor (GP) The CAMHs team will usually be involved with a child with FASD. It is always useful to have a Clinical Psychiatrist on 'your team' particularly if your child is encountering challenges with education.

The 'OT'

The Occupational Health practitioner. The OT is usually part of the CAMHs team and is a free service. Often they are extremely busy and you may want to pay privately for an independent OT. The SENCo relies on OT reports to be able to support applications for SNA help.

NEPs

National Educational Psychology Service. NEPs are usually county based and provide Educational Psychologists to schools upon request. Usually they will observe your child in the school environment and provide a report to the SENCo and the parents/carers. The report is one of many that can be useful when applying for SNA support.