Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 November 2023
77. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Education if plans are in place to provide an ASD room to a school (details supplied) that requires such an addition; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52750/23]
View answerI raised this matter with the Minister of State previously. It relates to St. Eunan’s National School in the town of Raphoe, which is in desperate need of a new ASD unit. Has she given further thought to this matter since I last raised it with her and what plans has she or her Department in place to provide a unit for this fantastic school and its deserving pupils?
I thank the Deputy for his question. He has indeed raised this matter with me previously. I have spoken to Mr. John Kearney of the National Council for Special Education and officials in my Department about this school. As the Deputy said, it is an excellent school. Before I speak about it, though, I have been in my role as Minister of State with responsibility for special education for three years and have been in a ministerial role for three years today. Three of those years I have spent working on special education. Since taking this role – since it was created for me – there has been an increase of 78% in special classes. We have created 1,300 special class places over the past four years. In 2011, we had 548 special classes. We now have 2,915, which is almost 3,000. A considerable amount of work has been done in this area. This year alone, we have opened 384 special classes. Of those, 17 are in Donegal – ten at primary level and seven at post-primary level. Overall, we have opened 251 special classes at primary level and 133 at post-primary level.
Regarding St. Eunan’s National School, which the Deputy asked me about specifically, it is important to stress that, in my role as Minister of State with responsibility for special education, I do not want a school that is magnanimous enough to want to open a special class in circumstances where there is a need for one only to be unable to do so. Having spoken to the National Council for Special Education and officials, if there are special class places available in the vicinity, the school will not be in a position to open a special class. This is not a “No”, but a “Not yet”. This situation, particularly as it relates to St. Eunan’s National School, is being monitored constantly. I understand that there is a school nearby in Killygordon, Dromore where five special class places are available.
It is the view of the National Council for Special Education that until those places are filled there will not be demand for a special class in another school. As I say, that is subject to change. It is a constantly evolving situation. If the Deputy were to come to me and say that he knew of children in the area who desperately needed a place in a special class in St. Eunan's National School, I could work on that.
I thank the Minister of State for her engagement in the aftermath of my raising the issue relating to this school previously. I do not in any way question her bona fides in relation to these matters, but we cannot treat children like this. It is just not fair. These are children with autism whose families may be struggling with other issues, as well as issues regarding their children's development. The answer here is that there are other classes in the vicinity, so go 10 miles down the road. It does not matter that the child's brother or sister is attending this school. It does not matter that the child's roots, family and connections are with this school. Three local families with children with ASD have been in contact with the school expressing the wish to enrol them. They will not be able to do so. They are local and they want their children to go to that school. A number of children in the school are in the process of being assessed. Once they get their assessments, they will have to leave the school because it cannot cater for them due to the lack of an ASD classroom. That means those children will be separated from their brothers and sisters. This is not the way to do things. Children with autism and their parents have enough challenges. For children with autism, the familiarity and trust that has been built up in the school community needs to be maintained. The Minister of State asked me if there are issues here. There are kids with autism who want to go to this school. There are pupils in the school who are likely to get a diagnosis. Please action this.
I very much welcome the efforts of the board of management of the school, the principal and the teaching staff who are willing to open a special class. The resources we have are for 350 special classes to be opened. This year alone, we have opened 384 special classes. There are 3,000 of these classes around the country which will have to be adequately resourced in order to provide those appropriate placements for the children who desperately need them.
The Deputy mentioned three local families who are looking to enroll their children in a special class in this particular school. I wonder if they have sought a place in the other school. I know it is 10 km away. From my perspective as Minister of State with responsibility for special education, the first thing we have to do is provide an appropriate placement. The second task is to provide one in the child's actual locality, exactly where they live. That is quite a difficult task. The National Council for Special Education tells me that it will not open a special class where places have not been filled in a school in the vicinity. That is the difficulty here. However, we will assess and monitor the situation on an ongoing basis.
That is exactly the difficulty here. The policy here is that the child who is born in this community cannot go to school where their parents went to school and where their brothers and sisters are going to school. They have to go in a different direction. The Minister of State, commended the management, and rightly so, on their willingness to open an ASD classroom. They have the classroom. There is no need for an additional one. They have the outside yard space and a dedicated toilet for an ASD class. They have all those facilities in the centre of the school and there is easy access to the sensory areas and the sensory garden. I have been there and seen it. There is no need for capital works or capital expenditure.
I look at this from the point of view of rights. These children have a right to go to the local school. It is not one child in this case. There are three who want to go to this school who have been diagnosed, while others in the school are awaiting diagnosis. There is demand in the local area. Surely to God this can happen when we have willingness, a classroom, a sensory garden, a sensory room and toilet already in place. All we need is approval and a staff member to allow kids with autism to be taught with their siblings in their local community.
As the Deputy knows, the right to education is enshrined in the Constitution. However, the location of the school is not enshrined as a right. That is not to say that I, as Minister of State with responsibility for special education, do not want children to be able to go to school in their locality. Unfortunately, it is not only children with additional needs but also other children who need to travel. I understand that Dromore National School is 10 km away, which is a bit of a distance. In my discussions with the National Council for Special Education, the difficulty I have - which I am sure the Deputy can understand - is that if those places are not filled, then it will be difficult to open a special class in the locality where these families want it. . I understand why they want this. We all have children and we wish for them to go to the school in their locality. We will continue to assess and monitor it and I will continue to engage with the Deputy to see what can be done in the future.
