Across the State, we do not know how many children with additional needs are waiting for an appropriate school place for the coming academic year, and that is deeply worrying. I note that in the Minister's opening statement she did not give us those figures, even though she probably knew we would ask her for them. I urge the Minister and the Minister of State to provide us with these details. They are really important to plan for anything. In the run-up to each academic new year I, along with other TDs, I am sure, get calls in my office from parents who have not received a school place, or, if they have, it is often in a setting that is not suitable for their child. It is wrong that parents must contact their local TDs on this matter. It is even more wrong that parents are compelled to take legal action to ensure that a child's right to an education is met. As we know, 22,000-plus children are waiting for an assessment of need alone. The Government looks at this challenge and opts out without appropriate consultation with disability groups to establish inclusive special education classes. There are simply larger classes with the same level of supports as previously, with no commitment to increase staffing. We have a broken system, and the Government seems determined to compound the failures in the system. The Government seems to be unaware that we face a crisis when the school holidays end. It seems that at every turn a parent of a child with additional needs must fight. It is battle after battle after battle. It is only a few short months ago that many of these parents rallied across the State in the Save Our SNAs campaign. Their advocacy forced the Government to change course. The Joint Committee on Disability Matters, which I chair, recently published a report on inclusive education for persons with disabilities. I urge the Government to read that report and to look especially at the Sky is the Limit programme, which operates in Corpus Christi Primary School in Moyross, in my constituency of Limerick City. It is a programme that embeds counselling, therapy and family support services within the school environment, thus allowing pupils and parents to access help that would otherwise be difficult for them to navigate. It is a model that could be looked at as part of the needed changes to how we deal with the issue of special education. We cannot keep rinsing and repeating this tired and outdated approach to special educational needs. We need to do much better.

Sentiment score: -0.02