Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State said there are more special education teachers than ever before. There is also evidence that classrooms have a higher percentage of children with additional needs than ever before. I go back to that broken system that Inclusion Ireland spoke of. The Minister of State is familiar with Sarah Dooley, who has been in contact with her office. This is the real-life impact of that broken system. Her sons, John and Patrick, have applied to 19 schools but have not received one offer. Both little boys have ASD and global development delay and are non-verbal. This is the reality whereby parents of children with additional educational needs are consistently and constantly being met with road blocks and blockages to their accessing the constitutional right to education.

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