Cork school to hold 'sensory protest' over therapist funding exclusion

Parents and pupils at St Killian’s Special School on Cork’s northside will carry out a ‘sensory protest’ at the school gates at lunchtime tomorrow, as their campaign to get the funding needed to hire therapists at the school moves up a gear in advance of the reopening of schools next week.

A spokesperson for the St Killian’s Unite group of parents described the sensory protest as “essentially a quiet protest”.

“It’s a sensory protest, keeping in mind that autistic children that have sensory differences will be present,” the spokesperson said. “This is a quiet protest so that the children won’t feel completely overwhelmed by any noise or any flurry of activity.”

Statement

In a statement issued at the weekend by the parents’ group, following the confirmation that St Killian’s Special School would not be among four special schools to participate in a pilot scheme announced almost two weeks ago, the group called for the grant of approximately €150,000 which they say Anne Rabbitte, the minister of state for disability, promised them when during a meeting in Leinster House last November, to be released so they could hire therapists privately if the school was not to be included in the pilot scheme.

“In the absence of any explanation or clear criteria for the selection of schools for the pilot, the exclusion seems to stem from the incorrect perception that the children who attend St Killian’s do not have as many complex needs as those in other special schools,” said the spokesperson. They added the perception was “entirely unfounded”.

“St Killian’s Special School currently serves 104 students, of whom 79 have a dual diagnosis of autism and mild to moderate intellectual disabilities,” said the spokesperson.

“Additionally, many of these children have further diagnoses, including ADHD, dyslexia, and complex medical needs, among others.

“A significant number of the students are non-verbal, and many are not independently trained for toileting.

“Furthermore, other students contend with a range of complex needs, including severe dyslexia, dyspraxia, speech and language difficulties, emotional and behavioural challenges, and severe self-injurious behaviour and suicidal ideation and are in urgent need of mental health support — yet, currently, none of these needs are being met through therapeutic intervention. Therapeutic intervention in St Killian’s was withdrawn in 2020, and the school has had to operate without a single therapeutic hour allocated to it since then.”

Frustration

Speaking to The Echo yesterday, Workers Party councillor in Cork North East Ted Tynan expressed his frustration over the difficulties in which the exclusion from the pilot scheme had placed the St Killian’s Special School community.

“There are children who require that extra bit of attention and help to allow them to get on with their lives and grow and prepare them for adult life — vital time is being lost now by the lack of investment by the Government,” he said.

“A small sum of money would enable the school to hire these therapists.”

Repeated attempts were made to contact Ms Rabbitte to get her response.

The protest will take place at the school gates, commencing at 1pm.