Plans for special education centres for children without school places draws backlash

A Government plan to create special education centres as an emergency response to a shortage of appropriate school places for vulnerable children has drawn a backlash from campaigners.

The Irish Times reported on Wednesday evening that five “special educational needs (SEN) centres” were being planned across north and south Dublin as an “interim” solution, aimed at children who have not yet secured a special class place in a mainstream school.

The plan drew swift criticism from advocacy groups, Opposition parties and the Irish Human Rights Commission who said it amounted to segregated education.

Inclusion Ireland, the national advocacy organisation for children with intellectual disabilities, expressed “shock” at the move.

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The group’s chief executive Derval McDonagh said the move could impact “massively” on the inclusion and educational outcomes of children who deserve and are entitled to an appropriate education”.

“We all know what happens with ‘short term’ segregated solutions — they quickly become the accepted norm that last years longer than they were intended to and that is not what children deserve for their education.”

Ms McDonagh said that the Department of Education was “not running an accident and emergency department” and the system has known about these children’s support needs for years.

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission also expressed concern over the proposal.

Sinéad Gibney, chief commissioner, said: “For this kind of announcement to be made suddenly by the Minister of State, seemingly without the participation of disabled people or prior consultation with their representatives is fundamentally at odds with the word and the spirit of the UN Convention.

In a statement on Thursday, Ms Madigan said that while the proposals were at an early stage, her “number one priority” was increasing the number of special class places in schools throughout the country.

“Every child with special educational needs deserves a school placement appropriate to those needs. I am committed to putting all possible solutions in place to ensure the needs of these children are met. This includes use of the section 37a process, which I’m committed to using where it has not been possible to get schools to open special classes,” she said.

Following a meeting with education stakeholders, organised at short notice on Thursday afternoon, Ms Madigan said there were “lots of proposals and ideas that come from the department and we want to find solutions that work for children with special educational needs”.

“We wanted to give parents a choice and provide options for children who did not have a place. We must also vindicate the constitutional rights of children to an appropriate educational placement. We have agreed to explore all options and will meet again on the 31st of May.”

Government sources say the plan involves creating five centres in Dublin — and possibly more outside the capital — to ensure no child with special educational needs goes without a school place.

It is understood that Education and Training Boards would manage and operate the centres, in partnership with the department and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), which would be aimed at children who have not yet secured a special class place in a mainstream school.

Given the extent of the backlash to the plan, it is unclear whether the Government will press ahead with the proposals.

Adam Harris, chief executive of the autism charity AsIAm, expressed “deep concern” over aspects of the plan which, he said, were the result of poor planning by education authorities.

“There is a lack of clarity over what they will look like. Will they be located alongside mainstream schools? How far will children have to travel to attend them? How long will they spend there? What pathways will children have to go on to special classes,” he said.

Sinn Féin also expressed concern over the “rushed” move which, it said, amounted to “segregation” of vulnerable children who should be in mainstream schools. Education spokesman Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire TD said parents do not want their children to be “separated and segregated” from other children.

“They want them to be part of the life of a school community, ideally a local school. It is devastating for these parents that the Government’s lack of planning has stopped them of this option,.” he said. “We are meant to be moving forward on the basis of inclusion, integration, not segregation.”