Debate contribution: Special Educational Needs and Disability: Investment and Transformation

Debate contribution by Mrs Cathy Mason on 26 February 2024.

MLA: Mrs Cathy Mason
Party at the time: Sinn Féin
Date: 26 February 2024
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Private Members' Business
Heading: Special Educational Needs and Disability: Investment and Transformation
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 4231216

Text

It is a privilege to be here for the first time, making my first speech, and it is important that I thank all those in South Down who placed their trust in me to represent them in the Chamber. I gave my word that I would work hard for the people of South Down and try to bring forward solutions to the issues that matter to them in their everyday lives. Those include making childcare affordable; providing better support for children with special educational needs; dealing with hospital waiting lists; and ensuring that people can access mental health services when they need them. It is with great honour that I stand here today representing the people of South Down from Newcastle to Downpatrick, Kilcoo to Drumaness and all the places that lie in between. I do so knowing the weight of responsibility that that brings, following in the footsteps of great Sinn Féin representatives like Mick Murphy, Caitríona Ruane and Willie Clarke, to name but a few. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a very proud County Down woman and that my heart lies in Drumaness, the village where I was born and reared. My children, husband and I now live in the small village of Loughinisland. Despite our Gaelic footballing differences, I am very proud to bring my children up in that close-knit community, which has itself, of course, dealt with a major tragedy but faced it with resilience. When beginning my journey in the Assembly, it was very important to me that my office would be based in Downpatrick, Down's county town. In the time ahead, I want to build on the good work that was done by my predecessors, Chris Hazzard and Emma Rogan, to build a vision and a better future for our town. Downpatrick has faced devastation from the recent flooding events, but I have no doubt that it will come back bigger, better and stronger than ever. A brighter future must begin with better access to healthcare and fighting for the restoration of services at Downe Hospital. Just a few weeks ago, sadly, I lost my hero, my big brother Peter. I witnessed at first hand the miracle that our healthcare system is, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the staff, nurses and doctors at the ICU in the Royal Victoria Hospital, who not only cared for Peter but lovingly wrapped their arms around us, his family. In order to ensure that our young people in South Down receive the very best start in life, they must have access to the best possible education system. We were elected in May 2022, and, over the course of nearly two years, we were forced to stand by while the situation facing children and young people with special educational needs became increasingly difficult. We need to come together and work hard to secure and deliver the necessary resources to support those young people and their families. There has been a systemic failure on the part of the Education Authority over a number of years, and we need to get to grips with the issues at hand. Of course, the case should and will be made for an enhanced funding package to be made available, but, first, we need to get things right at policy level. Time and again, the Department has refused to grapple with the EA's shortcomings on SEN policy. In fact, it was the work of whistle-blowers, frustrated system users and community and voluntary organisations that exposed the EA's failure on SEN policy implementation. In reality, those issues should have been picked up and dealt with by the relevant public authorities. Recently, I have been working with St Brigid's Primary School in Downpatrick, which is fighting to get Team Teach training for its staff, who are educating and caring for children with the same level of need as those who attend Knockevin Special School, which is just a stone's throw up the road and where staff are entitled to Team Teach training. That does not seem fair or justified, and, for the sake of the staff and the needs of those children, it must change. Adequate training must be made available for all those who are caring for our children. I know that each of our constituency offices are dealing with cases of exhausted parents who are fighting for the rights of their children to get the education that they deserve and are overcoming barriers day and daily. To conclude, I commend the work of those who tabled the motion. It has my full support, and I look forward to working with everyone in the Chamber to deliver on the transformation that is required for special educational needs.

790 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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