No special needs help for Lily on first day at school
Lily, who has Down’s Syndrome, attends school in Ballinderreen, Co Galway but her mother fears for her future without an SNA.
“Lily is a bright girl who needs resources and backup to help her,” Mary Mullen said.
“It was a rough day for Lily and she won’t be able to integrate unless the Government help her. I’m pleading with them to do something quickly.”
The young girl has plenty of friends at Ballinderreen National School, however, she could soon be left behind the rest of the class due to Department of Education cutbacks.
The bubbly five-year knows about eight children in her class because they all went to preschool together.
“Lily has an intellectual disability and needs assistance. At the moment she’s in mainstream education and while being around other children will benefit her, she still needs extra help,” Ms Mullen said.
Lily’s mother had feared at the weekend that her daughter wouldn’t be able to attend school at all.
“We thought there mightn’t be any place for her and she was all excited about going,” she said.
Just like thousands of other first-time school goers Lily was a little worried about making the move to big school.
“She had been talking about it all week but she went a little quiet when we brought her there,” Ms Mullen said.
Down Syndrome Ireland (DSI) claims that dozens of special needs children have been denied SNAs and other help.
DSI said the department is falling to help children with Down’s Syndrome just months after the Special Olympics.
Some 700 school starters have applied for assistance and 515 applications have been approved. The final batch of requests has to be processed.
A department spokesperson said children’s needs have been rigorously assessed and all refusals are based on professional advice.
“Out of 615 applications processed, some 515 have been granted resources,” the spokesperson said.
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