Michael Collins (Cork South-West, Independent Ireland Party) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate both Ministers on their new positions and wish them the best.

There are nowhere near enough special school places or classes in west Cork in my constituency. In cases where teachers suspect a child may have autism, there is a wait of 27 months to get an assessment. This is a serious issue for families who are left in limbo for 27 or even 28 months. Imagine that. We find ourselves in an astonishing situation in which children are being denied the help they need at an early stage. This affects their education and mental and physical well-being.

Everything seems to be a fight for the most vulnerable people in society when they need help. Last year, children with special needs required a classroom in the local school in Bantry but they were refused. Parents had to take to the streets of Bantry to win their right to get a classroom for their children, which is terribly unfair. Not so long ago in Kilbrittain, it was announced the early intervention classroom would be closed down. Parents and teachers had to fight to keep it open. They won but everything is a battle. This should not be the case. We should make sure those people are cared for first and foremost. Well done to the teachers in the early intervention classroom in Kilbrittain, for which I fundraised some years ago.

While I could give many examples, much like other Deputies involving their constituencies, I will give just one. There is a young lad in primary school in Bandon who has poor handwriting skills and was referred to the HSE occupational therapist. After 12 months of waiting, he was seen and the OT recommended he have the use of an assistive technology to prevent him from falling behind his contemporaries. His father gave the assessment to the school only to be told the child would need to have an educational assessment. The school is only allowed one assessment for assistive technology per year. There are currently other students awaiting assessments and the lad may finish school without getting this assessment. That young boy is going to end up falling behind completely. That is the system we have right across the board.

I agree that we need to invest in recruitment and continuous professional development for teachers and special needs assistants to ensure they are supported and meet the diverse needs of students in special classes, including addressing the root causes of the recruitment and retention crisis in the education and disability sectors.

See this speech in context