Parkview Special School summer scheme reprieved

This week members of the NIPSA union held a demonstration outside Parkview School in Lisburn to protest at moves by the Board to cut summer scheme provision from two weeks to one.

However following a meeting at Stormont with Stanton Sloan the Chief Executive of the Board they have agreed to reinstate the two weeks summer scheme.

Lagan Valley MLA Paul Givan welcomed the reinstatement to provide the two weeks summer scheme for children with special needs. Commenting on the issue Mr Givan said: "Children with Special Needs deserve the most support we as society can provide and to make cuts in this area is reprehensible. Not only do the children look forward to the summer scheme but the parents also value the opportunity it can provide them during the summer months to give them a little bit of respite. I welcome this decision and I know the children, parents and staff at Parkview Special School in Lisburn will be delighted and they are to be commended for the excellent campaign they fought but there should never have been a threat to the schemes in the first place."

Both teaching and non teaching staff joined the protest and stressed the importance of the summer scheme, which, they say, provides a lifeline to families during the period of school closure.

Local union representative Julie Kelley stressed the importance of the summer scheme. "This scheme is vital for families and kids," she said. "It is a social outlet for the children, when they have the company of their peers.

"It is up to the Education Minister to tell the Board to provide the funding for the summer scheme to remain at two weeks and everyone connected to the school is pressing for her to do that."

NIPSA Branch Secretary Janette Murdock added: "This is a brutal attack on children in Special Needs Schools. It is financially driven and is a direct consequence of cuts being forced on the SEELB by the Minister of Education and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

"We are calling on trade unions, parents and political representatives who genuinely oppose the Assembly's plans for cuts to unite in a campaign to defeat the cuts."

Lagan Valley MLA Jonathan Craig joined the protesters on Tuesday and criticised the Southern Education and Library Board for failing the needs of children with Special Needs this summer.

"The South Eastern Education and Library Board is failing the needs of local children with Special Needs," said Mr Craig. "This issue was raised at a recent meeting of Lisburn City Council and we as a Council have written to the Board highlighting our concerns.

"It is my understanding that the South Eastern Education and Library Board wrote out to parents informing them of this cut back and blamed other funders for not coughing up the money. There is no reason why they had to cut the funding for this summer programme given the small proportion of the budget it represents.

"Given the fact that the South Eastern Education and Library Board is run by commissioners it is not accountable to local people. Ultimately it is responsible to the Minister for Education and she has an enhanced role in this.

"I will continue in my call to see that those children with Special Needs receive what they need and are entitled to, this is only fair," he concluded.

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