Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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I welcome all our witnesses and thank them for their contributions. As is natural with young people, much of the focus is on education, where we all spend most of our youth. For some of us that was a long time ago. Are we a long way from a truly inclusive education system? I have come from a presentation in the audiovisual room where representatives, both parents and staff members, from three special schools in different parts of the country were present. Their focus was on the removal of therapies from special schools in 2020 and the call for those to be reinstated. A pilot programme was announced but has not been launched. Therapies in special and mainstream schools are vital. The CDNTs are not working. I agree totally with Mr. Harris about having a stakeholder-led review. We need to get to the nub of the problem with the CDNTs. Why is that not working? Children are missing out on so much, not being given a fair chance in life and not getting the supports they require to get an education, to progress to further education, training or employment and to live independently. One principal said she had witnessed four of her students, some of them quite young, going into residential care because the families cannot cope because the children are not getting the supports they need.

When I mention inclusive education to parents of children with additional needs, they are often nervous because they have a vision of going into a mainstream school and not getting the supports they require. I understand where they are coming from. I know Ms Soraghan does not like the term "special school" but there are some excellent schools for children with additional needs. That said, how many of them could actually be educated in mainstream schools with the proper supports?

I agree on the lack of awareness and proper understanding of disability among many teachers and SNAs. Some have understanding and the majority try but, unfortunately, they are not fully trained. That is one reason parents go to special schools rather than special classes or autistic classes in mainstream schools.

Mr. Harris mentioned AAC devices. They are very slow. A parent told me last week her son is pre-verbal. She feels he would benefit so much from the AAC device but she is getting knocked back all the time by the CDNT, which should be providing the device. She is told she needs to do such a course first and another course second, that those courses are full and that she will have to wait until some time next year. She is panicking because her son is missing out on vital supports prior to starting school. Have the witnesses any advice on that or on speeding up that process?

I commend both organisations on having youth wings established. It is important to be advocates for yourselves on issues that affect youth and as a social outlet for young people sharing ideas and supporting each other.