Eileen Flynn (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for again appearing before a committee. In the nearly four years I have been a Member of the Oireachtas, there has been very little action for people with disabilities. That is no disrespect to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Disability Matters or this committee. We also had the autism committee. First and foremost, there are too many Ministers dealing with the issue. We have a Minister of State with responsibility for special education but her Department has done very little in the past four years. I am speaking from my experience. There have been more than three presentations in the AV room and summer programmes for people with autism and people with special additional needs have been launched, but there has been very little action. I had to take a minute out and ask what are we doing. What is the difference between children with special additional needs and children with complex needs? There seems to be an issue when it comes to the use of the word "complex". I do not mean to be ignorant by saying that. When we use the word "disadvantage", we are disempowering people from marginalised communities. When we use the word "complex", are we making the child the problem, rather than the system being the problem, as was spoken about earlier? For me, it comes down to the failure of the State to implement the answers that are already there. We can do more reviews, but all that does is kick the can down the road. I have seen it with the Traveller community and other marginalised groups. We, as politicians, are really good at kicking cans down the road. I want to be part of the solution for children with special additional needs. Four years ago, Mr. O'Flanagan made the point to me that it is not just about bricks and mortar; it is also about the wraparound support for children. That point resonates with me at every committee meeting I attend when it comes to people with additional special needs. We talk about the social model for disability. We must ensure the needs of children who have chronic pain or issues in the education system can be met. What is the difference between the child with additional special needs and the child with complex needs? I understand the term "complex needs" but, in this context, does it refer to there being many underlying issues?

The witnesses from AsIAm stated that it cannot use the data that is collected. Why can it not use that data?

If we are serious about inclusive education, we need to make sure schools are resourced, children are at the heart of this conversation and parents of children with special additional needs are represented on the boards of management of mainstream schools. How do we move forward with meaningful action for children with special additional needs? I see it within the Traveller community. Mr. O'Flanagan referred to reduced timetables. A Traveller woman came to me a few weeks ago and told me her child was being labelled as bold and was being put out of school at 11 a.m., but she had not been consulted. I am sure it is no different for a child with autism or Down's syndrome. Before I came to the Oireachtas, I applied for a job as care assistant to a child in Ardara, County Donegal. I will never forget how stressed the mother was for her child. He was due to go into second-level education but she could not find a place for him. Every day, she had to drive for an hour to bring him to school and another hour to bring him home. That is happening across the board for children with special additional needs. Let us have special schools and special classrooms, but children who can be successful within mainstream classrooms should be allowed to be in them. I came through the education system with dyslexia. People with dyslexia should not be segregated. There are different forms of disabilities and abilities. SNAs can play a key role in children being successful within the education system. It is about success within the education system. What can we do to bring about meaningful change? I know the representatives of the NGOs, as people with personal and professional opinions, are blue in the face appearing before these committees, going to presentations in the AV room, talking the same talk and knowing the answers, but how do we implement it?