Laois parents are exhausted and at breaking point due to the 'scandalous' delays of needs assessments, a Laois Senator has argued.

Sinn Féin Senator Maria McCormack has called for immediate Government action on the deepening Assessment of Need (AON) crisis.

The Senator warned that families in Laois and across the State are 'being failed by unlawful delays' that deny children timely access to essential supports.

Speaking following proceedings in the Oireachtas this week, Senator McCormack said recent announcements by Ministers on reforming the AON process have done little to reassure parents, schools or disability advocates, while waiting lists continue to grow.

“In Laois, I am contacted daily by parents who are exhausted, frightened and at breaking point as they wait for assessments and therapies their children are legally entitled to. These are families doing everything right, yet the system is failing them,” Senator McCormack explained.

The urgency of the crisis was starkly highlighted this week by the actions of 15-year-old autism rights campaigner Cara Darmody, who slept outside Leinster House during Storm Bram to draw attention to the thousands of children waiting for assessments.

Pictured: Teenage autism rights campaigner Cara Darmody outside Leinster House

“While dangerous weather warnings were in place, Cara Darmody — a 15-year-old schoolgirl — spent the night outside the gates of Leinster House to expose the ongoing scandal of Assessment of Need delays. No child should ever have to do the job of Government,” she said.

More than 18,000 children are currently waiting for an Assessment of Need, a figure expected to rise to 25,000 by the end of the year, with the State breaching the six-month legal timeframe in 93% of cases.

“Families in Laois know all too well what this looks like in real life — children missing critical early intervention windows, parents forced to reduce work or leave employment entirely, and schools left without the supports they need to help children thrive.”

Senator McCormack also pointed to the failures in delivery behind headline announcements.

“Cara has already secured €20 million through Cara’s Fund and negotiated a national recruitment campaign with the HSE. But as she powerfully put it, ‘They gave me a car but forgot to give me the keys. Without therapists, the car doesn’t drive.’

"Without urgent, large-scale recruitment of therapists — both nationally and internationally — children in Laois and across Ireland will remain stuck and unsupported," she said.

Addressing Government reforms, Senator McCormack said she has raised the crisis directly in the Oireachtas this week and warned that proposed changes are being rolled out without clarity, consultation or certainty.

“The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) has criticised the Minister’s unilateral approach, with teachers and their unions excluded from discussions on reforms that will directly impact classrooms and school leadership.

"I also raised serious concerns about the decision to bring forward the October 1st deadline for parents to notify the NCSE of the need for special class places. Ministers have been unable to provide even basic data on demand, which undermines confidence in the entire process.

“Families in Laois and across the State cannot be left in limbo while changes are imposed on a system already at breaking point,” she concluded.

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