Funding secured for private therapists at Cork city special school

Arrangements are being made to get therapists into St Killian’s Special School on Cork’s northside without further delay after it was confirmed that a year long campaign by the school and parents had succeeded in getting interim funding of €40,000 to finance a private company to provide therapists for this term.

Four Cork schools selected to be included on a pilot scheme for the restoration of therapists have yet to see them on their premises.

However Andy Philips, regional executive officer for the Cork Kerry Health Region (CHO4), confirmed in an email seen by The Echo that the funding had been allocated to St Killian's following appeals made by the Cork South West TD Christopher O’Sullivan and his Fianna Fáil colleague in Cork North Central, Pádraig O’Sullivan, since a meeting held in early September.

Sue Linehan, St Killian’s Special School principal, said the confirmation was ‘welcome news after months of advocacy by the school and the parents of the children who attend the school’.

Grateful

“While this provides us with a short term solution, which we are grateful for, we need to make sure that therapists remain in place for the foreseeable future. We will continue to advocate for this until a permanent solution is put in place,” said Ms Lenihan.

Eibhlín Gleeson chair of St Killian’s Parents Unite, said this was a ‘signficant moment’ for the campaign. 

“We are relieved that the needs of our children have been heard in the short term and that we can get therapists into the school with immediate effect.

“We are grateful to all of the people who helped us to get this far, including the staff and parents of the children of St Killian’s and the incredible children themselves who always find a way to communicate their needs despite their many challenges.” 

Welcomed

Cork North Central TD Pádraig O’Sullivan, who is the Fianna Fáil spokesman on Special Education, also welcomed the confirmation of the funding for the school.

“It’s something we’ve all campaigned for over the last number of months. The money that’s been secured will ensure that the children of St Killian’s will have access to private therapy up to the end of this term.

 "We’re obviously very hopeful by that time that, with the next intake of schools on to the pilot scheme, we expect that St Killian’s will be in the next intake, that the rollover of services will be able to continue into the future.” 

Cork South West TD, Christopher O’Sullivan, paid tribute to the parents of St. Killian’s for their ongoing campaign and said the meeting they had had with them in September had been pivotal in getting this interim funding. He also thanked Disability Minister Anne Rabbitte for her intervention on behalf of the school.

Thomas Gould, the Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD, welcomed the funding announcement.

 “The €40,000 is a good first step. I just can’t understand why they didn’t allocate the whole €150,000 for the entire year," he said.