The Children’s Ombudsman is urging the Government to keep schools open for children with special needs.

Senior Ministers are today considering plans to keep schools closed until the end of the month due to surging coronavirus figures.

A decision is expected to be finalised at a full meeting of Cabinet tomorrow.

On The Hard Shoulder this evening, Nuala Ward, Director of Investigations at the Office of the Children’s Ombudsman, urged the Government to consider keeping classes going for children with special needs.

“There are some children that have suffered more than others, especially in relation to education since the pandemic started,” she said.

“For many children school is so important, especially, for example, children with disabilities and children with special educational needs.

“School is the place where they can meet their friends; where they can play with other children. It gives them routine; it gives them structure and it gives respite for the families – it is hugely important in their lives.”

Additional needs

She said the Ombudsman has heard from many parents about how much their children regressed during the first school closure and said news that they are closing again is “quite devastating” for many.

“For some parents, the whole idea of home schooling is just a non-runner,” she said. “You can talk of course about digital needs and remote learning but for a lot of parents the idea of home-schooling their own children is just impossible.

“You can imagine for parents who have a child with a disability, it is daunting for them.”

She said teachers and school staff have been “exceptional in keeping our schools open since September.”

“That has been fantastic for children,” she said. “I suppose what we are asking them to do is to dig deep again and to look at the needs of these children – because the impact of them not being in school is so much more severe than for other children.”

Short-term closure

Meanwhile, the children’s charity UNICEF has called for any school closure to be a “short-term measure.”

The charity said teachers should be prioritised for vaccination as soon as frontline health personnel and high-risk populations are catered for.

“We must safeguard the future of the next generation,” it said. “This begins by safeguarding those responsible for opening that future up for them.”

"Havoc"

It said schools must reopen as soon as possible to limit the harm on children and called on the public to “redouble efforts to flatten the curve of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“The pandemic has wreaked havoc on children’s education around the globe, disrupting almost 90% of students worldwide,” it said.

“The consequences of extended missed or impaired education are steep, especially for the most marginalised.

“Vulnerable and disadvantaged children face additional risks to their wellbeing as they access essential supports, including meals and social supports, through school.”

The charity backed calls to keep classes open for children with additional needs.

Committee

Speaking on his way into the sub-committee meeting this afternoon, the Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said any school closure should run for no longer than two or three weeks.

The Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said schools were safe but the Government needed to consider the surging case numbers when making its decision.

Meanwhile, the Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe also confirmed that the committee was considering closing construction for a number of weeks.