Parents of autistic children face fresh home tutor headache

A TIGHTENING of the rules under a home tuition scheme for autistic children puts the onus on parents to find fully qualified teachers, narrowing the range of graduates they can choose from.

In the past, arts, social science or psychology graduates, along with registered mental health nurses (RNMH), qualified under the scheme, but now the Department of Education says the qualifications are acceptable only “as an interim measure”.

The rule change has created chaos for hundreds of parents who now face being unable to secure appropriately trained teachers, according to the Irish Progressive Association for Autism (IPAA). IPAA chief executive Kieran Kennedy said the department not only expects parents to recruit fully qualified teachers, but it also expects them to prove they tried to do so.