Children and staff from Stapolin Educate Together National School have taken their campaign to the Dáil.
On Thursday (20), a petition with over 3,000 signatures was handed into the Dail, calling for additional autism classes at the school.
The school have launched a public campaign calling for two additional autism classes; at present, the school has two classes for children on the autism spectrum, but have identified the need for two more in order to keep up with demand.
The petition has over 3,000 signatures in less than a week, and has received support from both government and opposition TDs.
At present, there are eight children in mainstream classes at the school, who have eligibility letters which state they should be in special autism classes, but the school is unable to provide them as the Department of Education and the NCSE have yet to sanction the classes.
A further 30 children in the wider area are on a waiting list.
Principal Clodagh Farrell said that prior to Helen McEntee’s promotion to Minister for Foreign Affairs this week, the school believed they were making progress on the issue, and has now called on McEntee’s successor as Minister for Education, Hildegaarde Naughton, to finish the job.
“We felt like we were making progress, and were encouraged that she (McEntee) had committed to arranging a meeting with us, so we are hoping that Minister Naughton will continue to support our requests for additional autism class places in our school now that she has taken over that role.”
“The sanctioning of these classes are vital so that we can ensure that every child in our school community has an appropriate school place,” she said.
Farrell added, “we don’t want these children to be set up for failure, we want them to be set up for success.”
Local TD Cian O’Callaghan met with Farrell and the children outside the Dáil to collect a petition calling for the Department of Education and the NCSE to sanction the two additional autism classes.
The Social Democrats TD said, “there is a huge need for autism class places in the local community. Stapolin ETNS have the space, the skills and the expertise among their staff to support the opening of the two new classes. It would make a huge difference if these classes were sanctioned. I’m calling on the Minister to meet with the principal, urgently.”
Fellow Dublin Bay North TDs Naoise Ó Múiri (Fine Gael) and Denise Mitchell (Sinn Féin) also voiced their support for the campaign and met with the students and staff outside the Dáil.
Samantha O’Flanagan, a special needs assistant at the school, said “every child has the right to an appropriate school place.”
“It seems mad that we have a school like ours, so willing and ready to open more autism classes, and that we haven’t been sanctioned yet while we are in the midst of a special education crisis.”