CALLS are increasing for greater support for children living locally with special educational needs as it has emerged that many people are being left behind without support when they leave school.
Parents of children with special educational needs turned out to Parliament Buildings in Stormont in a bid to encourage the Northern Ireland Executive to take action to support the people.
Calls are increasing for Stormont to introduce an ‘Education, Health and Care Plan’, in line with England, which outlines a young person’s special educational needs until the age of 25.
Without the legal document, SEN children and their families are struggling to get needed help.
Major concerns were also highlighted after it was revealed that over 1,000 children with special educational needs in the North were in need of a school place for the upcoming term in September.
Pupils who are identified with SEN typically find out their school place in April or May, but due to a significant lack of funding and resources, there was a major breakdown in communication.
Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA, Jemma Dolan, pictured below, has been vocal on her calls for change.
“Children with SEN [special educational needs] being placed in September must be offered school places on time,” Ms Dolan previously told the Herald.
“These must be suitable to their needs to give them the best start in life. Sinn Féin has called for an overhaul of the SEN system to ensure it meets the needs of children and families.
“I would urge the Education Minister to work alongside the Health Minister and the other parties to transform SEN so that it delivers for all children. We must ensure children with SEN are a priority.”
Local politicians have all been united in their pleas for more support for SEN children.
“One issue my constituents bring up is information sharing between Health and Education, which is relevant when dealing with speech and language or mental health matters,” Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA, Derborah Erskine, said.
“I note from the statement that the Minister [for Education] will formalise information sharing across Departments, which is really welcome.”
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