Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú) | Oireachtas source

Last week on World Autism Awareness Day, families, parents and children stood together to demand access to education. Children with autism throughout the country are being locked out of a system that claims to be inclusive. The right to education is not conditional and should not depend on where you live or how loudly you shout. Nowhere is this clearer than in County Donegal, where children with autism are being failed. Nine families received notification that they were unsuccessful in getting a place for their children in Little Angels School in Letterkenny next September. How can this happen? Where was the forward planning and future-proofing in the new build? It is a shameful reflection of the disconnect between policy and reality on the ground. My colleague, Mary T. Sweeney, has worked with some of these families in the past and has raised the issue with Aontú. These families are heartbroken, frustrated and exhausted from the never-ending battles to uphold this constitutional right for their loved ones. Their children deserve a place in that school. They deserve to be seen, supported and given the chance to learn and thrive without chaos.

Another issue I would like to raise is summer support for children with autism for single parents. The current schemes are utterly unworkable. The Government continues to point to the summer programme as a solution but many schools do not participate in it. This leaves families in limbo for most of the summer. Parents are left stressed, isolated and without the respite and resources they need. Some have reported putting off essential medical appointments because they have no support in place for their children. I have a solution for that. A tax credit could be introduced for teachers and SNAs who work in summer school programmes. At present, many educators avoid the work because it can push them into a higher tax bracket, effectively cancelling out the benefit of taking part. If we want to expand summer support for children with autism, we must ensure we have staff to deliver it.