Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I apologise for arriving late. We had a marathon session in our own committee yesterday so I am sorry I was not here in time for the first presentations. I thank Inclusion Ireland and I acknowledge the work it is doing in bringing an opportunity to progress and develop to the people with special needs and disabilities of one kind or another. I used to be involved with the late Mr. Martin Naughton in part of the programme years ago. I will make two or three quick points.

This needs to be discussed. We have a situation where there is a duplication of services, maybe two or three groups, bodies, agencies and Departments trying to do the same thing and overlapping each other unsuccessfully. The area of school transport is one, with particular reference to transport to special needs classes or apprenticeships like we have in County Kildare, where spaces are available on the existing school transport which goes past the centres where the kids are going to special classes. These are apprenticeships after primary education. The children are not accommodated and to my mind it is an awful duplication. It is ridiculous to the point where it imposes on the parents, sometimes a single parent, the responsibility of bringing the child to the school to find that a bus passes by and goes in the gate at the same time with empty spaces on it. It is costing the people providing the service and the people who are in receipt of the service. It is not efficient. I believe in the maximisation of access to mainstream education for kids as much as possible. Not everybody agrees with me and I know that this has been an argument from time to time. To my mind the best way forward is the question of what is best for the child and what gives the child the best opportunity, taking into account the circumstances, the family and the parents.

If there are two parents, perhaps it is easier. In the case of a single parent, one person having to do everything throws a huge burden on that parent in dealing with the situation. One woman mentioned to me recently that she was 25 years dealing with this from the time the child was born until now. The burden does not lighten. It grows. We need to be conscious of the need to intervene and intercede in a way that helps people who may find themselves in such a difficulty. The theory would be to alleviate, insofar as we can and by whatever means we can, the burden that is thrust upon the parents as a result of the child having a particular disability.

We also need to spend more time on autism. It is particularly poignant. Developing the child's awareness of the things around him or her is difficult. I refer to putting in place discreetly and without making him or her feel different the things most likely to be of assistance to that child. It is surprising at how early an age the child can get concerned and frustrated about being different. Inclusion Ireland is the expert organisation in this area, but in the available curriculum we need to be more conscious of those particular needs and try to address them. Mainstream and special educational needs should be coming together. There should be a meeting of minds to try to ensure we cater for children with special needs in the best possible, most effective and most efficient way at the same time.