Ms Geraldine Moran:

We really do not want to be critical either. There are good news elements, and we are not laying this at the feet of the Department of Health. There is a need for universal, joined-up thinking. Regarding the Department of Education, we speak of schools, classes, inclusion models, etc., but we often wonder about teacher training, which takes a very short time. We are finding that many of the teachers in special classes are coming fresh out of training and are being sent into a specialist class to be a teacher. We want the Department of Education and the Department of Health to work side-by-side to support individuals with complex needs. Yet, from previous experience on the ground, we found that newly graduated teachers are teaching these very complex children. We feel that teachers of special classes should hold AP posts. They should require additional training, such as a postgraduate degree, etc. The staff from children's disability network teams, CDNTs, are now almost filling the backlog for teachers who do not have experience in working with these complex needs. They are expecting the CDNTs to come, fix the child and then they can teach them. They need to have a certain level of knowledge to be able to support the child. Then, the CDNT can liaise. The Senator is querying attitudes, but this should happen right across our different Departments.