Parents of 25 children given leave to legally challenge failure of special school places

Ray Managh

Ms Justice Marguerite Bolger has granted the parents of 25 children leave in the High Court to legally challenge Minister for Education and Youth Helen McEntee and the National Council for Special Education on their failure to provide school places for special needs children.

The judge sat for a whole day to ensure none of the applicants before her were left out in seeking to judicially review the Minister and the council for having failed them in providing special school placements for their children.

Ms Justice Bolger heard that many parents, despite having sought help from dozens of schools as far back as early 2024, have still been left with trying to provide scraps of education for their children at home with no State provision of help.

Senior counsel Joe Jeffers and Micheal D O’Connell SC, both of whom appeared with barrister Brendan Hennessy, outlined the refusal in letters from in some cases five or six schools in each case telling parents they just did not have accommodation or staff to facilitate their child’s education.

Judge Bolger was assisted by Niamh Maher of Healy Law Solicitors and Andrew Murnaghan of KM Solicitors, both of whose companies provide specialist legal advice to frustrated and disappointed parents, many of whom are unfit to provide home education to their special needs child.

The identity of parents or guardians, the children or the schools involved may not be published by order of the court.

The court was told of a child who has had to repeat sixth class three times and still cannot obtain a secondary school special placement and is facing into having to repeat the class for a fourth time. Judge Bolger thought the case to be so urgent that she considered hearing the application there and then but had to allow it go forward.

All of the applicants before the court were granted leave to seek an order of mandamus which, if granted, would compel the Minister for Education and the National Council for Special Education to provide an adequate and appropriate school education within such time as to be directed by the High Court.

Judge Bolger also directed the respondents to take all necessary steps to provide the applicants with full-time school placements as soon as reasonably possible.

Article 40 of the Constitution requires the State to respect and vindicate the personal rights of the child including a right of appropriate education suitable to their needs as well as protecting applicants from unlawful discrimination.

Under the Education Act of 1998 the Minister is charged with ensuring that practical effect is given to the applicant’s constitutional rights.

Mr Hennessy told Judge Bolger there could be as many as 60 or more cases dealt with by the court before the new school term in September. He said that 15 other applications had already been dealt with and there were another 20 cases coming down the line for consideration of the court on top of the 25 she had just dealt with.

Judge Bolger heard that some children had been offered consent placements “subject to building or renovation works subject to planning permission subject to planning objections and, down the road, subject to staff recruitment that would have to be addressed.”

All of which the Minister and the National Council for Special Education had maintained were seriously impacting on the provision of the teaching of any subjects for special needs children who, with their parents and guardians, were crying out for help before the start of the September new school term.