U-turn over decision to cancel special school summer schemes

Summer schemes at special schools will go ahead this year despite the Education Authority (EA) saying on Thursday that they would be cancelled.

It led to outrage from parents, and assembly members were recalled from their Easter break to discuss the issue on Tuesday.

But the EA has now said that following engagement with their organisation and the Departments of Health and the Department of Education "nursing support will be made available at each special school summer scheme site".

In a statement, the EA said: "This represents a workable solution that will enable special school summer schemes to be held this year."

"The overriding priority of everyone concerned remains the safety and well-being of children and young people, and EA will continue to work with special school principals to urgently prioritise planning for the summer schemes," they added.

They also said: "Engagement will also continue on developing and embedding a robust and stable model for year-round health care provision for special schools."

Earlier, on Friday, the Education Minister Paul Givan said he asked the EA to explore its options.

A recall petition tabled by the Alliance Party had been supported by Sinn Féin, SDLP and the TUV.

Previously, the EA said the summer schemes would not go ahead due to "concerns about the adequacy of health care provision for vulnerable participating children".

The Department of Health had said earlier that the decision by the EA was "highly regrettable".

Members were planning on meeting on Tuesday to discuss the issue, the Northern Ireland Assembly confirmed.

Sinn Féin MLA Danny Baker welcomed news that the schemes will now go ahead.

In a statement, he said: "This u-turn will come as a huge relief to parents and vulnerable children who rely heavily on this vital service and can now rightly look forward to it this summer."

He called on the the education and health ministers "to explain who made this decision, why, and a guarantee that the same mistake will never again be repeated".

The Alliance Party's Deputy Leader Eóin Tennyson said it was "positive news, but added that "there should never have been such panic and distress caused in the first place".

He said the handling of the situation by the two ministers has been "deeply inadequate and, frankly, incompetent".

'Everything is being stripped away'

Before the decision was reversed, Rhonda Carey, a mum of four children with special educational needs, said parents should have been consulted ahead of Thursday's announcement and said families were being "stripped" of respite.

"We weren't even asked for any input, any feedback, there was no alternative solution put in place," said Rhonda.

"It came as a terrible shock to people yesterday," she told BBC Radio Ulster's Talkback programme.

She also said that more should be done to help families regarding respite, in rural areas such as County Fermanagh and County Tyrone.

"Everything is being stripped away and it leaves parents and carers to deal with the repercussions, absolutely shocking."

One parent, Shelly, told the Nolan Show her 17-year-old son had gone to a summer scheme every summer since he was in Primary One.

She said without the summer scheme parents feel "extremely frustrated, frightened and completely fed up" that their children were "being denied yet again another service".

She said explaining to her child is hard because "as an adult I don't comprehend why this is happening".

Another parent, Ciaran, said his son was almost 18 and had also been attending a summer scheme since Primary One.

He said his son had complex needs and would not understand if the scheme did not go ahead.

He added this was the only respite the family gets.

What triggered the U-turn?

Analysis by BBC NI's political editor Enda McClafferty

As U-turns go this one was rapid and for good reasons.

Less than 24 hours after cancelling the summer schemes for children with special needs, the Education Authority backtracked and confirmed they will now go ahead as planned.

All of sudden a solution was found to ensure the nursing support will be made available at each summer school.

Something that wasn't possible this time yesterday.

The turnaround was triggered by the political storm when news of the cancellation first broke.

It was no longer a matter for the civil servants behind the scenes it was now a priority for their political masters.

The education and health ministers instructed their departments to search out a solution double quick in the face of mounting anger from frustrated families.

It is still unclear as to how the extra nursing resources were found so quickly and will all summer schools get the clinical staff they need.