Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday two reports on children were published. We have just heard about one of them, on the cost overrun on the national children's hospital and the additional €400 million to €500 million being incurred by taxpayers as a consequence of the lack of management of the project. The second was on a survey and published yesterday by the charity AsIAm entitled, Invisible Children – Survey on School Absence & Withdrawal in Ireland’s Autism Community. It contains a series of surveys of absence and withdrawal from school of children with autism. This year we are facing a really severe crisis. In Dublin 7 and Dublin 15 in my constituency no school places will be found for an estimated 40 to 60 children with a very high level of need, unless a small autism-specific school is developed for these children who may have not just autism but also other conditions, including behavioural issues. Does the Government propose to do anything about the children being expelled from schools, refused access to schools and having to stay at home and receiving little or no education?

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