Ms Deirdre Archbold:

Carers work 24 hours a day. I had a good job. I used to teach swimming to people with special needs and I loved it, but who can you get to mind an autistic child? I would love to work but, unfortunately, if my son is going to have a seizure, it is in the morning. I cannot imagine any employer keeping me on if I ring up within half an hour's notice saying, "Sorry, I cannot come in today", because my son sleeps for five to six hours after a seizure. He needs that sleep. His body is exhausted. Senator Wall asked about siblings. His sister is amazing. She had her own mental health issues after Covid and so on, but we have included siblings in our club from the very beginning because we have felt that they have been ignored. If there is a special group, it is a special group and only the special children can come. We have brought siblings in. They come to realise they are not alone. Ms Murphy does fun and games. The siblings interact, play with the kids and help out. Ger's older son, who is on the spectrum, is one of our volunteers. He is fabulous with our children. We need to include our siblings. They need more support. It is just-----