Autistic children – Failure to fill unit’s post is scandalous

IT is unconscionable that a unit for autistic children should be facing a threat of closure because of the failure to sanction a permanent teaching post.

Six months after it opened, the Department of Education has still to give the green light for a teacher to cater for the needs of those on the margins of the education system. This scandalous situation has come to light at Boher National School in Ballina, Co Tipperary, where the teacher is still employed on a temporary basis.

As so often happens in such cases, an exceptional teacher has become the driving force behind the success of this unit. But, as is only natural because of the on-going uncertainty of her position, she has been compelled to consider alternative job offers.