General election candidate makes urgent call for ASD places in Tullow schools

NO SPECIAL education classroom is currently available to children in Tullow despite the growing demand for ASD primary school places in the town.

Management at both primary schools in Tullow – Scoil Mhuire Lourdes and Scoil Phádraig Naofa – have expressed a willingness to provide special education classrooms; however, the lack of space at both schools has become an insurmountable challenge.

“It’s very hard to believe that in all of Tullow town, a population in excess of 5,000, there is not one special education classroom at primary level,” said Catherine Callaghan, Fine Gael general election candidate.

“As an SNA myself, I understand the value of such a resource in a school community. Let’s be very clear here – the leadership teams in both Scoil Mhuire Lourdes and Scoil Phádraig Naofa are very eager to have ASD classrooms in their schools, but the challenge for both schools is the lack of space available on the school grounds and in the existing school buildings to provide such classrooms,” she added.

Ms Callaghan recently invited minister Hildegarde Naughton, minister with responsibility for special education and inclusion, to visit both schools to see first-hand the wonderful work that is being done by staff and pupils and to also shine a light on the challenges that exist in relation to lack of space to accommodate the much-needed ASD classrooms.

“Minister Naughton committed to bringing this issue to the attention of minister for education Norma Foley and I am personally calling on minister Foley to stop overlooking rural communities like Tullow to provide assistance to school communities, which are doing Trojan work with limited resources,” said Catherine.

“I am asking her to stop giving a blanket ‘no’ to the purchase of new land, which the school leadership team in Scoil Mhuire Lourdes has identified as an immediate solution to accommodate two ASD classrooms on the grounds of Tullow girls school,” she added.

“Tullow needs ASD classrooms at primary level and Tullow needs them now.” Discussions are also ongoing between Scoil Mhuire Lourdes and Scoil Phádraig Naofa about amalgamating to provide one co-ed primary school in the future.

“Great work is being done in exploring the options for amalgamation by the leadership teams, patrons, boards of management and parents’ associations in both schools, which needs to be commended,” said Catherine.

“The provision of a brand new green-field site/state-of-the-art school would be ideal for pupils and their families in the Tullow area and it is something I will definitely be calling for more discussion and action on, should I be elected to the next Dáil.”