Linda Nelson Murray (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I can already see from what people are saying here that we are all thinking very similarly. I think we are going to be a great group. I hope we can discuss many things and bring about change.

Moving to the issues I would like to see raised in this committee, going back to what Deputy Coppinger said, I am passionate about inclusion in education. I am on the board of a special school in County Meath. I asked for a trial of a pilot programme because where we are really stuck when it comes to special schools is with regard to bus escorts and buses arriving at schools. This is because it is up to the principal and vice principal of the school to manage these aspects. If a bus escort is not available, if they are sick or something has happened, that child does not get to school. We need to have a transport manager who works within a certain area and helps to co-ordinate all this. Otherwise, it is up to the school. This is one thing I would very much like to work on. Additionally, it takes the bus escorts six weeks to get social welfare when they are not working over Easter, Christmas or the summer. It is very hard to get people into this job. The bus escorts are working two hours in the morning and two hours in the afternoon, so not many people will go for that job. We are lucky to have these escorts and yet they have to wait six weeks to get their social welfare. They also get means-tested every time they go for it. Again, this is something else I would like to see us discussing.

Another matter is including special education in mainstream schools. We have an unbelievable project in County Meath. It is in Boyerstown National School and is called the rainbow room. It is incredible to see the integration between children with highly complex needs and other children and how it is working so well. It took the dedication of a principal to get that done but it is well worth people seeing it. It is something that could be rolled out throughout the country.

We have 22 school projects in County Meath now, which is fantastic. Many of them, though, are caught up in the planning process. This is very frustrating. I know of one school in particular where the planning application went in last June. There is now another planning problem and a requirement for further information. Nothing can happen until that is done, so there is a lot of red tape there.

Turning to the topic of youth, in preparation for this meeting today I met with the Youth Council of Ireland and Youth Work Ireland Meath. Again, the issue is funding. Volunteers are doing brilliant work in all our youth groups and youth councils. I would like to see more funding going in those directions.

On early education supports, we know children from the ages of one to four have greater sponges in their heads than even older children have. It is very important we support them because they can take in so much information. Those are my bits for today.