Boom of precarious support posts at school, +276% in 10 years

In ten years, precarious support posts in state schools have almost quadrupled, from 33,371 in the 2015/16 school year to 125,462 in 2024/25, an increase of 276%. This is what emerges from an analysis by Tuttoscuola on data from the Ministry of Education and Merit. These are the so-called 'in derogation' support posts, chairs that are authorised each year to meet the actual needs of pupils with disabilities but which, by law, continue to be considered temporary. For this reason, they cannot be transformed into permanent posts in the establishment plan and are only assigned to teachers with fixed-term contracts.

The paradox, the study points out, is that these chairs have nothing occasional about them: they exist every year, are constantly increasing, and are indispensable to guarantee the right to study of pupils with disabilities. Yet they continue to be classified - under the regulations in force for many years - as 'in derogation', fuelling precariousness and making it increasingly difficult to stabilise staff.

In 2015/16, derogation support posts accounted for just over a quarter of all support posts activated in state schools. Ten years later they exceed half of the entire support workforce. The overall increase has been over 92 thousand posts in ten years, with an average growth of about 9-10 thousand per year. If no regulatory changes are made, the number is set to increase even further in the coming years.

The consequences fall mainly on the most fragile students. According to estimates drawn up by Tuttoscuola, out of the approximately 350 thousand pupils with disabilities in state schools, at least 125 thousand have had a different support teacher this year compared to the previous year, and there would have been many more without the approximately 46 thousand substitute teachers confirmed at the request of families, a possibility desired by Minister Valditara.

Indeed, educational continuity remains one of the main critical points of the system. The analysis also shows strong territorial differences. The growth in the number of exempted places has been particularly marked in the south of Italy, which in 2024/25 concentrates more than 36% of the national total. Sicily recorded the highest figure: from 1,383 places in 2015/16 to 12,359 in 2024/25, an increase of 794%. In the same period, Lombardy recorded an increase of 146%.