Dear Advocacy group/disability service/special needs interestgroup
I am asking you to attend a protest organised by theAlliance against Cuts in Education (ACE) on the area of cutbacks to SpecialNeeds education, and to post details on your social network (Facebook, #Twitteretc.) and web pages if this is convenient/possible.
Alliance against Cuts in Education (ACE) hasorganised a national demonstration this Wednesday,September 14th from 4pm, and will be marching from the Central Bankin Dublin to the Dail.
The ACE group, chaired by the Principal of Griffeen ValleyEducate Together National School in Lucan, Co. Dublin, Tomás O’Dulaing, is a"loose umbrella group" of interested groups, parents, teachers,SNAs and other individuals, whose aim is to campaign against "theimmorality of what this government is doing".
Maybe you wish to provide a speaker on the day? Or march alongsidethe other groups who are attending in order to protest against these savagecutbacks affecting our most vulnerable children? Please come along and voiceyour concerns or to add your support on the day.
My special needs/ADHD and autistic child (who is 7) has beenseverely lacking in access to an appropriate education since January of thisyear. This was due to several of the cutbacks, most notably the delay inaccessing a NEPS report and the reduction in his access to a full-time SNA. Heis not yet attending school this September as he is awaiting an appropriateschool placement which is due to begin this September. Many many other childrenare back at school this month facing a devastating array ofcutbacks, several with the support of special needs assistants (SNAs)reduced, or cannot access appropriate education due to these cutbacks. Accessto education is a human right! No one should be denied the opportunity toaccess an education and it should be appropriate to their special educationalneeds.
I wish to highlight the injustice of this situation and thelack of awareness from the Government and Department of Education ofthe urgency of this matter. The media spotlight up to now hasbeen focused on recent SNA caps, which have been nationwide and so far the mostvisible of the cuts in Education on our airwaves. But there are attacks on manyother areas of Education that are having the most severe impact on the mostvulnerable children in our schools. These cuts include a severely under-resourcedNEPS service, lack of access to school transport (a huge barrier to accessto special schools/units across the country), a pressing need for anindependent NCSE appeal process, language support teaching cuts,travellers support teaching cuts, reduced resource teaching hours,the aforementioned SNA caps, and larger class sizes (Ireland already has someof the largest class sizes in Europe).
Parents, teachers, SNAs and any individuals and disabilityor advocacy groups interested in Education (and Special Needs issues) are urgedto attend on the day and lend their support to speak up for the children whocannot be heard. Mr O’Dulaing says that, as a school principal, he sees on adaily basis the hurt in the eyes of special needs children as their resources,particularly special needs assistance hours, are reduced. "Children withspecial needs have the human right to fulfil their potential in our educationsystem," he said. "The shameful attacks on these vulnerable childrenengaged in by Fine Gael and Labour amount to a savaging of that basic humanright."
