Charles Ward (Donegal, 100% Redress Party)

I welcome the review of the EPSEN Act and many of its findings. Ensuring every child's educational needs are met is imperative. Education should be inclusive and responsive to the needs of all children, but this is not the case in many areas where children with special educational needs are unable to secure school places. I understand the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, is doing what he can to address the situation and I thank him for what he did for Little Angels in Letterkenny. We really appreciate that.

Donegal mothers should never have had to resort to travelling to Dublin to sleep outside Leinster House in order to be heard. We need a proactive education system, not a reactive one. I am glad the review recognises this and I support its recommendation to legislate for the legal right of access to preschool. All children should have the opportunity to attend preschool should their families wish they do so. To do this, we must start actively addressing the capacity and accessibility issues we are seeing in preschools, especially in rural areas such as Donegal.

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan's comments on developing an implementation plan before the end of the year on delivering the report's recommendations. The annual dilemma parents face every September is that we do not have enough places for our children. Children with special educational needs deserve the same certainty as all other children that they will be able to attend school. We need to strengthen the legal rights of children within the education system and ensure that every child has equal access to education.

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