Ms Toni O'Dwyer:

I thank the committee members for opportunity to speak with them today.

Vision Ireland works with approximately 20,000 people across the entire age spectrum and continuum of vision loss. As the only organisation that works across the whole life cycle, we are in a unique position to witness the experience of students as they transition to tertiary education and employment. The aim of our children specialist support service is to improve outcomes of people who are blind or vision impaired, where the low rates of participation in further and higher education and employment continue to be of concern. Of equal concern are the difficult experiences frequently recounted to us from students who have transitioned. The lack of focus on the longer-term educational and employment outcomes contradicts the present metrics used to measure success, which are leaving certificate results and entry to college statistics.

I concur with all of the issues outlined by my colleagues here today and wish to make some points in terms of context. Blindness and vision impairment as a primary disability in children is a low-incidence but high-impact disability, where students frequently require an intensive and supplementary vision-specific curriculum. A low-incidence disability can mean isolation, frequently being the only student in the school with this disability. It also means that the level of expertise and knowledge required to support that is scarce or very limited.

The term "vision impairment" includes a range of reduction in visual function, from blindness to low vision. It affects a diverse population within which there is a wide spectrum of need. We do not expect everyone to have the knowledge required to give support. What we do request is that the expertise that is there is co-ordinated within the educational structure to ensure that the individuals' needs are met.

For students who require alternative formats or access, supports need to be provided on a continuum, from high support as they gain the knowledge of alternative media to a stepped-back approach where they gain the skills of independent access and thereby gain control of their own learning. Independent learning is dependent on the availability of assistive technology. It is also dependent on the development of a skill set to manage materials with greatest possible ease and efficiency. Lack of independent access to materials creates an unnecessary dependency on others to be able to engage in education.

The approach to sense supports for students with higher incidence or higher prevalence rates disabilities does not transfer to students whose primary disability is vision impairment. Their requirements relate to access to learning as well as learning compensatory skills as opposed to behavioural support or care needs. We have many examples of students with visual impairments whose experience in education was positive, supportive and inclusive; and we also know that the dedication of in-class, resource and visiting teachers, SNA and parents has facilitated this positive experience. However, we also have evidence of students who have had very difficult experiences. Some students transition without the prerequisite skills and knowledge to transition.Consequently, their trajectory into employment is significantly longer than their peers.

Specialist support includes access to the standard academic curriculum but also to a range of independence skills, starting from early years and continuing throughout students' education. The intensity of support needed in these areas requires a greater level of resources than is presently available.

The need for timely transition planning is universally accepted within education. In response to the difficulties articulated by students, Vision Ireland is delivering a transition programme in transition year to address the skills gap. The programme provides an individualised transitional support package for students before they move to the senior cycle. The programme is now in its fourth year and is an example of how intensive and individualised transition support can be delivered with impact. Our recommendation is to scale these transitional supports for students with visual impairments in co-operation with the educational support sector.

One of the more positive developments in recent years has been the inclusion of students with visual impairments in the summer provision scheme. This provides the opportunity to spread the additional burden of required learning across the full year, thereby allowing critical learning opportunities for students to develop the additional skills necessary, including, for example, Braille literacy, independent travel and digital skills. However, due to the way in which the scheme is structured, most students do not benefit optimally from it. I thank committee members for listening.