Ms Áine Lynch:

We had much contact from parents of children with special educational needs. It was a really difficult time as parents were struggling, children were really struggling and we had many examples from parents of how much of a struggle it was. There were other cohorts of children who also struggled, including children in homes where there were difficulties arising from disadvantage, home violence or other issues in overcrowded homes. There were many children in this category about whom we had particular concerns.

There is the question of whether enough was done. We lobbied for some time in trying to get schools reopened in June. It was very difficult as we were also competing with public health advice, and that discussion was ongoing. We really welcome the extension of the programmes for children with special educational needs and children from areas of disadvantage. We are concerned about children who do not fit into those categories, including children in mainstream schools who have special educational needs and who do not come under that remit. There are also children who may have a very difficult home scenario but who do not live in DEIS areas. We have concerns about those children.

There must be a planned approach to how to support those children and families when the children return to school. There is a risk some children may be disengaged from education over the past couple of months; they may already have been at risk of disengaging and there has been a long period out of school. For some children, March was the last time they engaged with their education and they have not experienced home learning. There is much there so we must ensure we plan well in advance of the return to school to ensure children with special educational needs and those with other levels of disadvantage are supported in their return to school, along with their families.