Department of Education Report

Department of Education Report:

Supporting All Children and Young People to access an Appropriate Education: A Review of the Admission Policies of Primary and Post Primary Special Classes for Autistic Children and Young People 

This report, published on Wednesday May 7th 2025, provides the findings of a review of thirty admission policies for special classes for autistic children and young people. The report highlights the importance of school admission policies in ensuring all children and young people have access to an education that meets their individual needs. It emphasises the importance of schools fulfilling their responsibilities in a way that ensures children with the greatest need have access to special class placements. 

The full report can be accessed here.

The report highlights the Department of Education’s failure to address the needs of students with Down syndrome. Our families struggle for inclusion in this system makes them feel invisible and ignored. It is disappointing that the Department does not know how many students with Down syndrome are in our schools. The complexity of their needs and the barriers to inclusion that they face have not been reviewed, counted, or considered. This makes investigating policies and outcomes, and addressing the barriers faced by students with Down syndrome impossible. This conveys a message that our children’s daily struggles within the education system are not a priority.