'My son is constantly asking when he's due to start school'

Catherine says she is "tired fighting" and just wants "Séadhna to have an appropriate place to go"

The mother of a five-year-old boy with special educational needs has said she is "angry" that he is still without a school place this year.

Catherine Quinn's son Séadhna is autistic and is due to start Primary One this September.

Catherine, who is from east Belfast, told the BBC she is still "currently waiting" on a place.

"His statement was changed so that he was allowed to attend a specialist unit and now there is no spaces for him," she said.

The Education Authority said it "fully understands the concerns and frustrations of parents with the SEN placements process".

"We are actively working to confirm a specialist provision place for Séadhna," it added.

"We are still currently waiting on a space becoming available for him but we don't know when he's going to be able to start school," Catherine said.

"It's really difficult, it's really stressful you just feel like you're in fight or flight all the time. You are working to time frames that they are giving you which they are exceeding," she added.

On Wednesday, the Education Authority (EA) said six children with special educational needs are still without a September school place.

The education body said it was continuing to work with schools "to ensure that all children can access education".

Catherine says "the longer it goes on, the more Séadhna is missing out"

Catherine said her son is "constantly asking" when he is due to start school.

"He sees his brother, his cousins going to school, you have no answers for him. You can't tell him when he's going or I don't know the answers to tell him. It is really unfortunate."

"I think time and time again it happens over and over again and it's not being resolved year after year," she said.

"So even though they are saying that all these things are being put in place, I don't believe it's happening."

"The longer it goes on the more Séadhna is missing out, Séadhna has autism and social communication difficulties."

"If he doesn't have that social aspect, you just worry that Séadhna is not going to progress and the longer it goes on the harder it's going to be to get him to go as well," she added.

'Legal right to education'

Catherine says "it's our legal right for him to be supported somewhere"

Catherine said she is "stressed" and "angry" and adding, she doesn't believe there is enough being done to help children like her son get into school.

"It's been a long time coming and I'm tired, I'm tired fighting. I just want Séadhna to have an appropriate place to go, somewhere where he can feel safe and he is supported correctly."

"Séadhna is going to have to be supported somewhere and it's our legal right for him to be supported somewhere, why make me wait all this time and potentially have to take legal action against the education authority," she added.

"Why not just open a place for him, and allow him to start school at the same time as every other child starting."

'I had to intervene'

The education minister said it is "not acceptable" that some children still don't have a place.

Speaking on Radio Ulster's The Nolan Show, Paul Givan said: "It's a manifestation of the pressures that we have within our education systems."

He called on all schools in Northern Ireland "to come on board and to work with us" in accepting SEN children.

"We had to do work identifying schools that would be working with us in order to create the places," he said.

"I had to intervene and personally write out to schools appealing for them to do this," he said.

"This is an education system response that is needed, it can't be solely a solution from the department or the education authority."

Givan also said that next year the demand for SEN places "is going to be higher than what it was this year" and said more schools need to provide support or "we're not going to be able to meet that need".

In June, the EA wrote to principals informing them it was considering an unprecedented move to instruct some schools to admit SEN children.

On Wednesday National Association of Head Teachers Northern Ireland secretary Graham Gault welcomed the additional SEN places that have been created since then but said "the fundamental issue remains chronic underfunding of education by the Northern Ireland Executive".

"The fact that only 26% of mainstream schools currently offer specialist provision is not due to lack of will or commitment from school leaders," he said.

"Complex systemic issues prevent schools from taking on specialist provision classes, and these barriers must be properly understood and addressed."