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Changes to summer scheme for children with disabilities to be considered after High Court cases

The scheme provides funding towards extra schooling in July for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder or severe learning disability.

THE GOVERNMENT IS to consider changes to an extended education scheme for children with severe learning disabilities or autism spectrum disorders after a number of court cases taken by parents of children who were rejected from the scheme.

The Department of Education settled three cases taken by the parents of children with Down Syndrome who were denied access to the scheme. The details of the settlements were not made public but it is understood that access to the scheme was not included.

However, the department has confirmed to TheJournal.ie that it is now considering reforms to the scheme.

The July Provision scheme provides funding towards extra schooling for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or severe or profound learning disability for the month of July. Where school-based provision is not feasible, 40 hours of home-based provision may be grant aided.

The scheme was developed to reduce potential regression in learning associated with these categories of special education needs over the summer holidays.

In one High Court case in which Free Legal Advice Centres (Flac) represented the child’s mother, the mother explained that her six-year-old son has a diagnosis of Down Syndrome along with a range of other education needs. He does not have a diagnosis of autism or of severe or profound general learning disorder.

He is non-verbal, has hearing loss and wears a hearing aid to improve his listening and communication. The child communicates with a combination of sign language and a few words. He also has poor eyesight.

He was in senior infants at a mainstream school and his mother said any disruption to his daily routine caused him “stress and frustration”. She said she feared the break from school in summer each year would cause her son to regress.

An educational psychologist who had assessed the boy stated in a report that the child’s needs were many and varied, and that he was more at risk of regression the longer his breaks from education were.

The Department of Education told the boy’s mother that as he did not have a diagnosis in either autism or severe to profound learning disability category, he did not qualify. The department also told her that the scheme could not be extended to further categories of disability.

The case was settled, as were two other cases taken by parents of children with Down Syndrome.

2016 recommendations

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) published a review in 2016 of educational provision for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Although the review found parents valued the scheme, it concluded that:

Consultation groups were clear that in general, the scheme was not working in line with its original purpose and that, in its current form, it could not do so.

The review identified a number of problems including that it may not be equitable as it is not provided to all students with complex educational needs. As the review states, “Groups considered that access to the scheme should be based on student need rather than disability category”.

The council recommended that the relevant government departments consider how an equitable national scheme could be developed for all students with complex special educational needs, including some children with Down Syndrome.

The NCSE found no research basis to support the provision of an extended school year to children/families with ASD and not to other children/families with complex special educational needs who could benefit from it.

Back in 2016, the report’s authors stated their concern that the scheme “may be open to challenge on equality grounds”.

They noted that it was “clear that parents of students with ASD valued July provision and felt other parents of students with complex needs should benefit also”.

Ultimately, they recognised the difficulty of removing such a scheme from those already in receipt of it but recommended that “an equitable national scheme should be developed to replace the existing ESY scheme and should be consistently available throughout the State”.

Reforms

The Department of Education has now confirmed to TheJournal.ie that it set up an implementation group to consider reforms to the scheme. A spokesperson said part of that work involved consulting a number of other government departments and State agencies on the about the scheme.

“A report on their work is to be prepared for the minister and stakeholders will be consulted on any proposed recommendations,” the spokesperson said.

Flac chief executive Eilis Barry welcomed the review of the scheme and said she hoped the review “will focus on the assessment of individuals needs rather than the current category-based evaluation system”.

She added: “The Department of Education has an obligation under the Public Sector Equality and Human Rights Duty to ‘eliminate discrimination, promote equality of opportunity and protect the human rights of those to whom they provide services’, and this obligation applies to the July Provision scheme.”

Barry said Flac now calls on this review to consult with representatives from not only the various disability groups but also parents of children who would benefit from an extended school year, to input into the review process either through membership of the panel or by a series of consultations.

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    Mute Kerrie Roche
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    Oct 7th 2019, 1:50 AM

    Good.may they also review the long term illness scheme, that has not changed in decades

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    Mute GrahamMManning
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    Oct 7th 2019, 7:05 AM

    So the NCSE made recommendations 3 years ago and FG did diddle all about it until some desperate parents were forced into a position to legally challenge it and now there’s a “working group”? Sounds about right. How long til the group reports? Will it’s report he made public? Will FG, or whoever’s in power then, actually do anything about it? FG and Joe McHugh, do your job!

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    Mute Alan
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    Oct 7th 2019, 7:08 AM

    All parents and children would benefit from an extended school year regardless of educational need. We are heading down a slippery slope when equality for all goes out the window

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    Mute Helen O'Neill
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    Oct 7th 2019, 7:24 AM

    @Alan: I think the point of July provision is that children with various disabilities are more likely to forget certain things and regress over that time off, where as the majority of kids are fine and get back into the swing of things quick enough come September. I think by the end of June most kids (and parents) are in dire need of a break from school and have some fun which is just as vital for a well rounded lifestyle.

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    Mute GrahamMManning
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    Oct 7th 2019, 8:01 AM

    @Alan: equality of access to and opportunity in education does not mean everyone gets the same support. By your logic everyone should get an SNA or no one should. Everyone should be in a special class or no one should. Everyone should be in a special school or no one should. Etc etc. I know tis early…ish but tell me that’s not what you’re saying?

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    Mute Diarmuid Hunt
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    Oct 7th 2019, 8:16 AM

    @Alan: A bit like saying giving an inhaler to a child with asthma is destroying equality, if the children with asthma get an inhaler so should all the other children. If that sounds ridiculous, it’s because it is.

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    Mute Carol Oates
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    Oct 7th 2019, 10:23 AM

    @Alan: When it comes to disability, it is not so much about equality as equity. Equality is so very well if every child is starting from the same place. However, some kids need more support than others to achive their potential and that’s where equity comes in. Every child deserves the same opportunity to reach their potential and that means more supports for those who need it most. It means equity in education, not nessesarily equality.

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    Mute Sharon Clifford
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    Oct 7th 2019, 8:34 AM

    My son is in a special needs school and they do the July provision however this summer it was cut from 4 weeks to 2 weeks with little or no advance notice to parents. Reason given was they 1. Couldn’t get enough staff and 2. Staff said they wouldn’t work the extra 2 weeks as they would earn more money and end up in a different tax bracket. Didn’t really matter to us as we were away for part of it anyway but other parents with children that have high dependency needs felt shafted. Yet again our most vulnerable are forgotten and parents are worn out . Just when one thing is sorted something else crops up!

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    Mute Zmeevo Libe
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    Oct 7th 2019, 8:43 AM

    @Sharon Clifford: For children in mainstream, it is up to the parents to find a teacher. We’ve been doing July provision with my son for 10 years, and it is getting harder and harder to find a teacher. I had teachers pull out after the application was submitted because they were offered a summer job in a camp or exam supervision.

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    Mute GrahamMManning
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    Oct 7th 2019, 4:51 PM

    @Sharon Clifford: 1. They could’ve looked outside their school for staff. 2. Only an issue for SNA staff or teachers not in full hours as almost all fully employed teachers are in the higher tax bracket anyway. V bad form from the school.

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    Mute Sharon Clifford
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    Oct 7th 2019, 5:04 PM

    @GrahamMManning: yes agree! Poor management as usual …

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    Mute Sharon Clifford
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    Oct 7th 2019, 5:04 PM

    @Zmeevo Libe: that’s awful for you! As if you haven’t enough to be worried about

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    Mute Eddie Mc Keown
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    Oct 7th 2019, 8:26 AM

    40 hours once a year is nowhere near enough of a support.
    Anyone who has a learning disability or delay needs access to more than 40 hours.
    And then there’s always the ones who abuse the system also.

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    Mute GrahamMManning
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    Oct 7th 2019, 4:52 PM

    @Eddie Mc Keown: not really much scope for abusing this system.

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    Mute Gigi
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    Oct 7th 2019, 8:56 AM

    We had July provision for our two little boys who both have autism. But it became almost impossible to get a teacher to do it… unfortunately, teachers don’t seem to want to do it.

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    Mute GrahamMManning
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    Oct 7th 2019, 4:49 PM

    @Gigi: tends to be younger, less experienced teachers with less than full hours who do JP. while the money is fine, working in July to be paid in November is less than appealing when there’s other options.

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    Mute Joan O'Boyle Mitchell
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    Oct 8th 2019, 1:13 AM

    I have a kid on the spectrum and I am a teacher who had taught JP to other kids. Main teacher problem is you working July but get in November. So by November you are in your main job and I effect earn 2 salaries tat month so lose 60% of that pay. So ends up you’d be better doing any job in July and getting paid in August. I did it when I was on temp contract so wasn’t paid during summer. I loved doing it but if Dept Ed could pay it in August when I wasn’t earning it would be way better.
    As a parent we had some lovely teachers, one in particular became a family friend.
    I also know families with Downs Syndrome kids who ouldnt get JP yet needed it badly.

    Also kids with Special needs don’t ‘forget’ what they learn over the summer…it’s generally they like to keep up the routine of school as that helps regulate their emotions

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