‘Don’t let disabled pupils down again, Minister’

DISABLED children ‘ cannot wait’ until February 1 to return to school, disability groups have said – urging the Government not to repeat the mistakes of 2020.

Minister of Education Norma Foley met with advocacy groups representing students with additional needs and their carers yesterday afternoon.

And while she agreed that the reopening of schools will be prioritised for this vulnerable cohort, she could not provide an exact date as to when that will happen.

Children in special schools were also due to receive home tuition, starting yesterday. However, the Irish Daily Mail has learned only a small number of young people already in the scheme are eligible.

A source from Inclusion Ireland said: ‘It won’t make a dent for the vast majority of students impacted by the school closures.’

Adam Harris, founder of autism charity AsIAm, said that many young people with special needs have been educationally deprived since the onset of the pandemic.

‘A lot of these children have not had therapy since March, and lost key skills due to being out of school for so long. Remote learning just isn’t effective in many cases and [the] last thing we want is for the same mistakes to be repeated,’ he said. ‘It’s great to have a clear reassurance that they’re now being prioritised, but we need the Department of Education to deliver urgent measures in the interim, such as part-time schooling and in-person support.

‘Children with special needs cannot wait until February 1,’ the autistic brother of Higher Education Minister Simon Harris said, adding: ‘We’re calling on the Government to reopen schools for them by January 18 at the latest.’

Ms Foley had to abandon plans for a limited opening from this week for 18,000 disabled pupils after a backlash by teacher unions. The four leading advocacy organisations that met with Ms Foley yesterday were Down Syndrome Ireland, Inclusion Ireland, AsIAm and Family Carers Ireland, representing 30,000 children in total.

A spokesperson for the groups said: ‘The minister acknowledged the serious pressure parents and family carers are under and recognised the urgency in alleviating this... The Government must not let our vulnerable students and their families down again.’