A Tipperary family who struggled to secure a school place for their five-year-old with autism have said they are “over the moon” that their son started school this week after a six-month battle to raise awareness of his case.
The parents of Michael Barrett, from Cahir, had received a total of thirteen rejection letters in recent months for a place in an ASD class in mainstream school, leaving them under enormous stress. The Barrett family spoke to Gript in March about having applied for a primary school place for Michael, who has autism, all across Tipperary, saying they believed the situation was “hopeless” and that they felt “crushed.”
Michael’s mother, Tina, had explained that her son required a place in an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) class for starting primary school. However, for every one place, there were around 20 other students applying, and whilst the family had applied since October 2024, they continually found that ASD classes were full to capacity.
The local primary school, where Michael’s four siblings attended, was at full capacity, with principals in local schools saying that more funding was needed in order to expand availability, the family said. The case was raised in the Dáil by local TDs Mattie McGrath and Séamus Healy.
The House heard that children across the country were “crying out” for autism assessments, psychology services and speech and language and occupational therapies, and that services were simply not there to meet demand. Deputy Mattie McGrath, referring to Michael’s case in February, said that these issues were coupled with a severe shortage of appropriate school places, and that once again, parents were scrambling for schools.
Figures from the Department of Education have pointed to a significant percentage increase in the number of Irish children being diagnosed with autism. Official figures published last year evidenced a three-fold increase in diagnoses in less than a decade. The growing prevalence of the condition is placing strain on the education system with more authorities scrambling to find places for children with additional needs.
Michael struggled to access supports needed for early intervention. When he turned 12 or 13 months old, his mother noticed signs of ASD, including seeing the little boy flapping his hands and walking on his tiptoes, and his speech “completely disappeared.”
“Michael started school on the first of September,” Tina Barrett told Gript on Friday. “We are over the moon that he got a place in the ASD class we fought for six months to make sure Michael would get what he was entitled to. As a family, we were always going to fight for Michael to have an appropriate school placement for September – we did not want him to have to do another year in preschool, as he would have been too old.
“We have had massive support from our families, and from people in Cahir, and in fact, all across Tipperary and beyond. Without people standing behind Michael and fighting with us and the help of the media, Michael’s fight for a school placement would of never came to light, not would it have stayed at the forefront of people’s minds.”
Tina expressed special thanks to Deputies McGrath and Healy, who raised the case “over and over” in the Oireachtas; up to eight times over six weeks.
Speaking in February, local TD Mattie McGrath said: “They are going around to dozens of schools in some cases for a place next September. At the same time, I have schools offering ASD units and they are meeting delays and brick walls from the Department. I have young children like Michael Barrett and Oisin Carroll who deserve an education and cannot get places. Others are currently waiting without a school place. We have Scoil Aonghusa, a wonderful institution, which is bursting at the seams waiting for additional accommodation. Yet again, the Department is letting us down and not helping them out there. We have a severe issue and we have to grasp the nettle and do something serious about it.”
Tina continued: “We also had Michael Murphy working in the background. We will be forever grateful for all the help and support people from all over offered us and to everyone who shared Michael’s story day in and out. When we received the news that Michael had been offered a placement in a special class in a local school, myself and my husband were so elated that we drove straight to the school to meet with the principal and sign Michael’s enrolment form.
“As we left the school, it felt as though the weight of the world had been lifted off of our shoulders and our fight had finally come to an end. It was better than winning the lottery; all of the stress, worry and sleepless nights disappeared with a stroke of a pen that day.
‘WE SHOULD NEVER HAVE HAD TO ENDURE SIX MONTHS OF HELL’
“But we as a family had to fight for Michael’s right to enter education. We should never have had to endure six months of hell. The Government needs to look at the system at present, because currently, it is not working. Making parents apply for up to 20 schools or more is wrong, and the untold stress placed on families is inhumane. To be left in a state of limbo is horrendous; we are one of the lucky families who were able to fight and secure a placement. But we are very mindful of all of the children who have not yet secured a school placement.”
Tina says that seeing her son run to the bus every morning “with a massive smile” on his face, followed by an even bigger smile when he returns home, has made the six month campaign worth it.
“He has settled into school life very well and with ease. We would once again like to thank everyone for standing behind Michael and fighting with us. We put out that call for help never thinking we would get the response we did.”