Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Education is about ensuring that every child can reach his or her greatest potential and thrive. Obviously, that means a great deal of different things to individual children and families. For children in special schools and children in places like St. Killian's Special School, which is a remarkable place, therapies are absolutely crucial to ensuring that those children can reach their fullest potential. At the minute, they are extremely frustrated because they do not believe their children are getting the support those children deserve. We would do well to remember what this means in real terms and what the provision of this will mean for those children and parents and the staff.

St. Killian's Special School, which is based in Mayfield, cares for people with dyslexia, dyspraxia and speech and language issues and pupils with a diagnosis of autism and complex needs. Since 2020, they have not received any therapy in speech and language, occupation therapy, social work, play therapy and physiotherapy. Before that, they were receiving three half days of therapy each week. They were told, and I suppose they received some encouragement from the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, that if they looked for a private multidisciplinary team to undertake the therapeutic services at St. Killian's Special School, the Minister would cover the cost of trying to find that and the funding might be in place. The last they heard was in November 2020. I am sure we could say that things were happening in the background, but the least the school and parents deserve is to hear back. That is seven going on eight months ago now. I am hoping that progress was happening in the background but I am worried that it has hit a roadblock. I want to hear from the Minister of State what is finally happening now that they have done the work. They have done everything right. They have gone through the channels. They have gone through the Department. They went away and found a provider. They know the costs. They want to know whether the Department will now cover the costs. I think they deserve it, and the Department should assist them.

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