There is confusion this evening around the provision this year of a special summer programme for children with special educational needs.
Disability organisations and parent representatives expressed alarm at proposals they say were outlined to them at two separate briefings with Department of Education officials earlier today.
They say they were told that new limits would be placed on children accessing the programme, known as "July provision", this year.
More than 10,000 children with autism or a profound intellectual disability avail of the two week scheme every summer. It is designed to ensure that students don’t fall behind during the summer months, and can be school or home based.
Because children have been out of school for several months it is recognised as being even more necessary this summer.
Intellectual disability organisation Inclusion Ireland and autism charity AsIAm say they were told by officials that participation in this year’s programme would be limited to children attending special schools or special classes attached to mainstream schools. The programme is normally open to students who attend any kind of school or class setting.
They say they were also informed that additional limits would be placed on the home based aspect of the programme, with eligibility limited to children who cannot for medical reasons attend a school based programme.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
However, the Department of Education has said that no such limits are being placed on the programme, although it has not denied that the disability organisations may have been told otherwise at today's briefings.
Inclusion Ireland has said the new proposed criteria were "bordering on discriminatory", while AsIAm said it believed that up to 70% of children with autism who would normally avail of the programme would not now be eligible.
In response the Department has said that any child who had been eligible in previous years would be eligible again this summer.
In a statement it said that today's meetings were about listening to the views of stakeholders, and that no decisions had as yet been made.
"It is not the case that only children who are in special classes or special schools will be able to avail of the programme or attend any service offered as part of the programme", the department statement said.
However, Inclusion Ireland and AsIAm, as well as a parent who attended a separate briefing, are all adamant that they were told by Department officials of limits to be placed on the programme this year.
Although the programme is called 'July provision' this year's programme may not take place during the month of July.
The Minister for Education Joe McHugh has said that it will take place as soon as public health considerations make it safe to run.
The Department of Education and disability and parent organisations are keen to get the programme up and running in order to support the return to school of children with autism and intellectual disabilities in September.
In the Dáil this afternoon Minister McHugh said details of the planned scheme would be formally announced next week. He said the scheme would be "widened" this year.
He said he recognised that students with special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage needed to be prioritised in any summer educational programme.
"Regression in their learning and transitioning to the next educational setting is a real concern for some of these students", he said.
Responding to the department’s statement this evening, Inclusion Ireland said the scheme should be opened to all children with intellectual disabilities.
Adam Harris of AsIAm said he was very clear on what they had been told by department officials, and he said he welcomed the fact that "what was proposed to us today is not what the Minister envisages".
