Ms Tamara Byrne:

I am a self-advocate. I work with Inclusion Ireland. I have faced a lot of barriers as a person with an intellectual disability and my rights are often ignored. I am really lucky in life, but it should not be about luck. It is my right to be treated like everyone else in my country. Governments must make sure that people with disabilities have the right to go to school on an equal basis with others, as it says in the UNCRPD. They must make sure that we are educated alongside our brothers and sisters and people we grow up with in our communities. I felt included the whole way through local mainstream schools because my friends from my own community gave me support without making me feel less than them. I got good support from special needs assistants and teachers and I always felt comfortable asking for support when I needed it. My parents had to fight for this help.

However, the school and the Government did not see that I was a young person with potential. I did an applied leaving certificate and, with this type of exam, I did not have the option to apply for college. I was told my only choice was to go to a day service, but that was not enough for me. I wanted to be in college and to keep learning. Leaving school was terrible. I started to have depression and anxiety because I did not have a choice like my friends. I had to fight to go to Maynooth University to study medieval Irish history and media.

College was great for me and gave me a direction in life. The college programme asked other students to volunteer as a buddy with me while I learned about this new world. This volunteer and the programme facilitator helped me with my assignments and presentations when I needed it. I had one-on-one meetings with my lecturers so I could find out before lectures what I needed to prepare.

I have produced and presented radio shows. I was part of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission project on learning to speak up in the media. I am also the co-host and tutor for the LEAP project for Kare services, which won the best diversity and inclusion award at the 2022 training awards. I am a spokesperson for Inclusion Ireland and Inclusion Europe and I am part of the European Disability Forum youth committee.

I am one of the lucky ones, but it should not be about luck. We need to be ambitious for children leaving school no matter what level of support they happen to need. We need a better system for all children. It should not have to be a fight for basic rights that other people take for granted.