Lack of ASD places in Laois may force mum to homeschool child
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I'M A MUM to a wonderful boy who is currently in school in Scoil Bríd, Portlaoise. He is a sixth-class student in the ASD class. He's been there since junior infants and before that he was in an autism Montessori school in Timahoe.
Last month, I applied to Portlaoise College for both the ASD homeroom unit and mainstream as I knew the ASD unit is not expected to be available for two years. He was unsuccessful on both counts and is ninth on the ASD waiting and 89th on the mainstream waiting list.
A few years ago, he would have met the criteria for a space in mainstream school.
Now it seems he didn't meet any criteria and was categorised with people from towns many kilometres away who had no affiliation to the school. There are two other schools in this town, but one has two buildings separated by a main road. My son has mobility issues, so this school would not suffice. The other is a single-sex school, which is good for most, but I believe my son would be a target for bullying. Also, he came up in a mixed school so he shouldn't have to suffer a change.
The ASD classroom in the single-sex school has two spaces available for September 2025, but I have been informed the ten or 12 names that have been submitted are to be put into a hat rather than based on which child needs it most.
We have all been advised to look further afield, even though that will increase the length of time our child with extra needs is on the road. It may also increase the need for some parents to give up their jobs.
When the Department of Education was contacted, a spokesperson said it’s up to secondary schools to allocate places as they see fit and it's only the department’s job to ensure there are enough spaces for local kids.
My question is that if the schools are offering places to children in other towns, how will there be enough spaces for local kids?
Children from Portlaoise should not be told to apply outside the town, nor should they have to. Children with special needs in Portlaoise should not be told to go to different counties. Children who have come up through ASD classrooms in mainstream should be planned for and accommodations made for them years in advance in the secondary schools they have chosen, as is their right. They should not be pawned off to other towns and counties.
From a mother who may now be forced to homeschool her child due to the chronic state of affairs.
