Jen Cummins (Dublin South Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister and the Minister of State on their appointments and wish them the very best of luck. I thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this motion on special education. I fully support it. It is time now for the State to take urgent action to ensure that every child has access to the education they deserve and have a right to receive. I have heard so many stories across my constituency of Dublin South-Central, as others here have outlined from their own constituencies, about families struggling to secure school places for their children with additional needs. Last night I spoke to a mother who is part of the Dublin 12 autism group. It has identified that there are five children in the area who have not got a secondary school place for this year. The number might not seem huge, but it is massive to those families not to have a school place when their children have been in primary school and now are going into secondary school. Forward planning really needs to be ensured to avoid this. It is not acceptable, it is avoidable, and we need political will and forward planning.

One of the most pressing challenges we face is the recruitment and retention of teachers, as other contributors have said, across our education system but in particular to support children with additional educational needs. We are just not moving fast enough to qualify teachers. The Teaching Council process is very slow as well, acting as a barrier rather than a bridge for teachers who want to work in our system. Many teachers from abroad who are highly qualified and eager to contribute arrive in Ireland only to find themselves stuck in an administrative limbo. We therefore urgently need reform of the Teaching Council's recognition of registration process for those teachers who can enter classrooms without unnecessary delays.

There also needs to be appropriate and full training for teaching staff that starts with the initial teaching education at undergraduate and then at postgraduate level, as well as continuous professional development through the teaching career. Expecting teaching staff to be able to appropriately support students with additional needs without training is not acceptable and it is unfair to everyone, both the teaching staff member and the child and their family.

Alongside teacher recruitment, we also must prioritise the expansion of school infrastructure. A prime example is the case of Social Democrats councillor, Lesley Byrne, who is principal of Clogher Road Community College, in Dublin 12. She has expressed clear willingness to expand the special education classes. She has been in contact with the National Council for Special Education to make this happen, but the reality is that she and many other principals lack the space to do so. The schools therefore cannot create these much-needed classrooms because they physically do not have the space to accommodate them. We have to commit to funding the expansion of these special education classrooms in both existing and new school buildings.

The Government also needs to address the allocation of special needs assistants. These professionals play a vital role in our school community, ensuring that children with additional needs receive the support they require within the mainstream system where appropriate. It also helps with the child's development. Yet year after year we hear of delays in allocation and cases of children who need support but are left without it. The Government must increase SNA allocations and ensure that they are provided in a timely manner to schools.

Finally, we need to have an honest conversation about the role of private schools in special education provision. The burden of catering for children with additional needs falls disproportionately to the public school system, while many private schools, with their significant resources, do not take their fair share of the responsibility. This is not sustainable and not just. All schools, whether private or public, that receive State funding must provide appropriate support for children with additional needs.

Passing this motion would implement necessary solutions that would make tangible differences to the lives of children in Ireland. It is time for the Government to act decisively by speeding up teacher recruitment, prioritising infrastructure, increasing SNA allocations and ensuring all schools, including private institutions, play their part. Let us ensure that no child anywhere throughout the country - not just in Dublin South-Central - is left without a school place or left out, because that is their right under the Constitution.

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