Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I appreciate that he is only standing in for his ministerial colleague. He said there has been significant investment but we are just not seeing that locally in Kerry, which has one of the lowest numbers of early intervention classes in the State. An early intervention class includes a qualified primary school teacher and SNAs teaching the children. As one mother said to me, this setting of targeted and specific expertise can be life-changing for children. This is why there is frustration for parents. They are hearing about all the great investment that is coming but they are not seeing the progress in their community, particularly, it seems, in County Kerry.

When the Government has failed to deliver early intervention classes, as a backup or plan B or C, some parents have been offered AIM support. Many of them consider that provision unsatisfactory because they then have to source some home support. Even then, there are delays in getting the home support registered with and approved by the Teaching Council. Unfortunately, that system is not as speedy as it should be. While the AIM staff are qualified childcare workers, they have had no training in special education provision. Most of the time, according to a mother I spoke to, the children are left to their own devices.

The educational tasks taking place in mainstream classes have little to no relevance to children with autism. They need the practical life skills and educational tasks that take place in early intervention settings, which will scaffold and support the children to sit and attend to a simple task, such as washing their hands unaided. The work that takes place in early intervention is child-led and is a million miles away from the mainstream preschool setting. Is what they are currently being provided with an appropriate education? Their parents say it is not because AIM is not monitored and they feel their children are missing out. It is a plan B but it is not working.

See this speech in context