54 parents of children without suitable special educational needs school placements will stage a 24-hour sleep out at the Department of Education from 1pm today.
In what they describe as a “final effort” to draw urgent attention to the ongoing crisis in special education, the protest comes after repeated pleas for action have gone unanswered by the Department.
The families claim the Department has left them with “no other recourse”.
Their children, along with many others with special educational needs, continue to be either placed in inappropriate settings or left without a school placement entirely.
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A press release from the families protesting said the families now “feel compelled to take dramatic action” to highlight the severity of the issue.
“We have exhausted all conventional channels, and this sleep out is our last resort,” said one of the protesting parents.
“Our children deserve safe, inclusive, and appropriately resourced educational environments.
“The inaction we’ve experienced is not only heartbreaking - it’s unacceptable.”
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According to these parents, the protest aims to:
- Shine a light on the critical shortage of suitable SEN school places for the 54 identified children and others like them.
- Urge the Department of Education to implement immediate and effective measures to address the gaps in support.
- Demand transparency and accountability in the allocation of resources to special education.
The sleep out will continue for 24 hours, with parents remaining at the Department’s premises to “ensure their voices are heard” and “that the plight of their children is not ignored any longer”.
Pictured is an empty Junior Infants classroom ready for first day of school children at Gardiner Street Primary School, Dublin. 29/08/2019 Photo: Sam Boal/Rollingnews.ie