'Detrimental effect' on children with autism as school strikes set to force more classroom closures, warns NI charity

The head of a Northern Ireland autism charity has warned school strikes from Monday onwards will have a "detrimental effect" on children with disabilities.

The first in a series of strike dates by thousands of school support workers - including classroom assistants, bus drivers, cooks and other staff members - is set to begin on Monday.

While mainstream schools will be able to largely remain open, schools in the special education sector - who educate children with disabilities, learning difficulties and complex needs - are set to be hardest hit. One special school in Co Derry has already confirmed a sweeping set of classroom closures, following several other closures this year as the dispute rumbles on.

Read more: Department of Education statement as union warns school support staff could strike during exams

Read more: NI children in special education being failed, says mum as industrial dispute continues

The Unite trade union confirmed earlier this week that it has informed the Education Authority of upcoming strike action.

A union spokesperson said: "The strike will commence at 00.01 on Monday 20 May and continue for three days until 23.59 on Wednesday 22 May; with further strike days planned in June.

"The strike will involve more than one thousand special educational needs assistants, classroom assistants, bus drivers, bus escorts, catering, cooks, admin and other school support staff."

The principal of Rossmar School, a special school in Limavady, Co Derry, told parents in a letter this week that all primary school classes will be shut. Only four classes at the school, which educates children of pre-school age through until their late teens, are set to remain fully open.

Autism NI chief executive Kerry Boyd said: "Classroom Assistants play a pivotal role in autistic children accessing education and their support is vital in ensuring that they can achieve their best educational outcomes.

"Although Autism NI supports the work of Classroom Assistants and their right to strike, the strike action will undoubtedly have a detrimental effect on many pupils."

She explained: "Autistic pupils rely heavily on the support from these workers and to take that away temporarily means that they are unlikely to have their full allocated time in school.

"The disruption from these strikes will also mean that routines will change suddenly, which can lead to autistic children feeling overwhelmed with the change and experiencing meltdowns.

"Every child should always have equal access to the Northern Ireland education system, including our autistic children. These strikes will undoubtably cause worry amongst our autistic children and their families and I therefore hope the issues that have instigated this industrial action are resolved as soon as possible."

Unite, alongside other trade unions, is calling for a pay and grading review to be taken forward. Funding to settle the dispute has not been allocated at Stormont.

Unite official Kieran Ellison, in a statement, said: "There seems to be money for all sorts of political priorities but nothing when it comes to SEN education or the lowest paid education workers.”

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