Ulster Unionist Education Spokesperson, Sandra Overend MLA, has slammed a ham-fisted decision by the Education Authority to reduce the hours special needs pre-school children receive from 4.5 a day to only 2.5. This has resulted in a U-turn by the Education Minister.

Sandra Overend said:

“This change would have been highly problematic for a range of reasons. Firstly, the deceptive manner in which it was uncovered was deeply regrettable. It was not brought before the Assembly, or in front of the Education Committee. Instead, it was only revealed via a letter to a parent. I thank that eagle-eyed parent for their vigilance, but it must be asked, how did this change even come close to happening?

“The Authority suggested that this is designed to increase the opportunity for children to access special school places. However, in reality it was a cynical cost-cutting exercise, which would have undoubtedly harmed the most vulnerable people in our society.

“Many of these children are travelling long distances to these schools. To have to travel, sometimes up to 45 minutes or more for two and a half hours of teaching is madness. Additionally, these children have a wide range of specific circumstances that may result in these two hours not being two teaching hours. They often have complex toiletry needs, which take time, and many receive therapies during this time.  The cumulative effect of these may mean that the actual time spent teaching is very minimal. This is totally unacceptable.

“These are very young children, with moderate or severe learning difficulties. They deserve every minute of help we as a society can provide. With SEND children, repetition is a key element in learning, and a reduction from a full-time place to a part-time place must be justified. This is a shameful decision, and I welcome John O’Dowd’s belated U-turn.

“We must also consider the strain on teachers this causes. They go from one block of students to two. This doubles the work in terms of educational planning, while simultaneously reduces the time spent with each child. It is an unavoidable fact that this will lead to increased stress and strain on teachers and children.

“The Minister was clearly asleep at the wheel at the department here. I know he intends to step down in the coming mandate – but this is a dereliction of duty that cannot be excused. If it were not for the public outcry, this would have passed by without the Minister’s knowledge. This is simply not good enough.

“The Minister was questioned on the matter during Education committee today and I hope that further clarification from the Education Authority will be forthcoming for next week's final meeting.”