Special school protest: 'These kids are our flesh and blood and we will fight for them to the very end'

Parents protesting at St Killian's in Cork demand that the Government either include the school in a pilot project for therapeutic services or approve a €150,000 grant for private therapy

Cousins Paddy Breen, Aodha and Thade Swanwick, and Eilís Gleeson protest at St Killian's School. Picture: Larry Cummins

There was no chanting and there were no loudspeakers at the sensory-friendly protest outside this special school in Cork yesterday but the message to Government was still loud and clear: Deliver on your promise or face the consequences at the next general election.

St Killian's, in Mayfield, is the largest special school of its kind in Munster. Therapeutic interventions were withdrawn in 2020, prompting the parents to set up the St Killian’s Parents Unite campaign group last year to secure the services again.