A British expert on educational provision for children with special needs has told the High Court he believed a centre offered by the State for an autistic child was suitable to the child's needs and offered an autism-specific curriculum.
Prof Barry Carpenter said he thought the Fairlands Child Development Centre in Galway could offer a curriculum which was appropriate to early childhood special education.
There might be a case later in a child's school career where it would be more appropriate to offer an autism-focused class made up solely of autistic children. He had some concerns about the length of the holidays at Fairlands because of the need for continuity in intervention for children with autism.
Mr Paul O'Higgins SC, for the State, said he would be calling evidence that there would be 40 weeks a year of school-based activities for Colum McNabb at Fairlands. The school caters for children with special needs with specific reference to children with autistic spectrum disorder. Prof Carpenter said if 40 weeks were provided at Fairlands, that was "good going".
Whether Colum should remain at the Abalta school in Galway city, which is run on the system of applied behaviour analysis and where the court has heard the child has made good progress, would depend on the gains made there, Prof Carpenter told Mr Pearse Sreenan, for Colum. Perhaps other systems of education could benefit him too, he added.
Prof Carpenter was giving evidence in the continuing action by Colum (4), who is suing through his mother, Ms Nichola McNabb, Moycullen, Co Galway. The child is seeking declarations that the State has failed to provide education appropriate to his needs to date and wants orders directing such education be provided now.
During yesterday's hearing, Mr Pat Walsh, the father of an autistic child and member of the task force on autism established by the Department of Education, said there had been no census to establish the numbers of children with autism in Ireland. He agreed this meant the Department was unaware of the numbers for whom it had to provide services.
The case resumes before Mr Justice Lavan on Tuesday.