Pearse Doherty (Sinn Fein)

In the last fortnight the issue of how a special educational needs organiser, SENO, makes decisions about the allocation of special needs assistants without the right to appeal, brought hundreds of people across the Inishowen peninsula in my home county of Donegal to a public meeting in support of the parents affected by this situation.

I wish to publicly commend and offer my full support and that of my party to these courageous parents. The huge attendance at their public meeting on Monday night last, 16 June, speaks volumes about the mood across Inishowen on this issue. The parents, with the full support of the schools across the peninsula, want the right to appeal controversial decisions by the special educational needs organiser to remove or deny the allocation of special needs assistants to their children. It is remarkable that one person can be given the power to overrule a multidisciplinary team of professionals and deny the support to special educational needs children that their parents and schools seek. What is even more remarkable is that this person is not accountable to anyone affected by the decision.

Of course, the impact of these controversial decisions is much wider than children with special educational needs. Teachers already trying to cope with overcrowded classrooms in many instances are left in an impossible situation of giving the specialised support to children with special educational needs while ensuring the provision of education to the remaining children in the class is not diminished.

For example, in St. Patrick's boys' school in Carndonagh, the review of special educational needs was conducted by a particular SENO on 16 June 2008. The review decision confirmed reduced access to special needs assistants for all pupils and the reduction in special needs personnel from five to three, and possibly further to two for the year 2008-09. At another school, Carndonagh Community School, special needs personnel have been further reduced for the year 2008-09 from six to three. That involves five to six job losses in the Carndonagh area alone, in addition to the removal of much needed care support from the pupils, teachers and families. The decision taken following the SENO's one-day visit and observation have caused much grief, exasperation, pain and tears for a school which has worked long and hard at securing and ensuring equitable treatment and access to education for all of its pupils.

The facts are that yet again, just as with the HSE, we are seeing decision-making and accountability being outsourced by Government. Rather than parents dealing with a Minister directly accountable to the people on this issue, we must deal with a non-Government body, the National Council for Special Education. This allows Government representatives to hide behind the body's decisions and failures. It is not good enough in a supposedly democratic society.

On behalf of the 350 people who turned out in Inisowen, I plead with the Minister to immediately implement in its entirety the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004, to ensure the right of these families and schools to appeal controversial decisions taken by SENOs.