A new legal action about education for autistic children commenced yesterday. The action, aimed at securing State funding for a school providing specialised education for autistic children in Dublin, was initiated at the High Court in Dublin.
The school, set up by parents, operates out of the back garden of one of their homes and receives no State funding.
Mr Justice McKechnie yesterday granted leave for the bringing of judicial review proceedings taken by four autistic children - suing through their mothers - against the Minister for Education and Science, Ireland and the Attorney General.
Their case is that the State should fund the education of the children according to the method of Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA), which involves a pupil-teacher ratio of one to one and the provision of care assistants. It is considered by experts to be particularly effective in the teaching of children with autism. The child plaintiffs are Oisin Fulham (5), Hollybrook Grove, Clontarf, Dublin; Alex Dunne (5), Aulden Grange, Santry, Dublin; Aidan Murphy (5), Southern Cross, Inchicore and Megan Walsh (4), Moyglare Abbey, Maynooth, Co Kildare.
Dr Michael Forde SC, for the plaintiffs, said his clients had gone to great lengths to provide for the education of their children and had set up a special school in Clontarf.
They had met the Minister for Education last December and explained their predicament, but nothing was done. They then threatened legal proceedings, but the response from the Minister was a "holding letter" stating that a review committee had been set up.
Dr Forde said in light of last week's High Court judgment by Mr Justice Barr, in which he found the State had breached its constitutional obligation to provide for free primary education for an autistic man, Mr Jamie Sinnott, his clients had "an overwhelming case".
Mr Justice McKechnie gave leave to Dr Forde to seek a number of orders including orders requiring the State to provide free primary education to the applicants by way of ABA at the Irish Children Autism Network for Development Opportunities School or otherwise to an equivalent standard; to recognise the ICANDO School and to pay the school board £1,300 a week pending the hearing of the full judicial review action. The applicants also secured leave to seek damages for negligence and/or breach of duty, including statutory and/or constitutional duty.
In an affidavit, Mr Colm Fulham, father of Oisin Fulham, said his son had developed normally until about 16 months. His speech became less intelligible and then disappeared, to be replaced by heart-wrenching screams and cries.
Direct eye contact also disappeared, Oisin became distant and isolated and no longer answered to his name. He had temper tantrums lasting hours and bringing him anywhere was a nightmare. In August 1998, they were told Oisin was "on the autism spectrum" and there was no cure.
Mr Fulham said he and his wife learned about autism. They introduced dietary changes which led to improved behaviour and fleeting eye contact which grew steadily.
They learned about the ABA method and, with other parents of autistic children, built a school in the back garden of their home in Clontarf. They remortgaged their home to do so. The school began on May 4th 1999 with four children on a one-to-one basis. Each child had made great progress.
"Oisin is no longer the frightened little child with no voice; he had learned to dress, undress, wash his hands, recognise emotions, play and, most especially, use language." But, Mr Fulham said, the cost of building and running the school was enormous and would not have been possible without unpaid voluntary effort and some charitable support. He feared if the school was forced to close due to lack of funding that the children's health would again be under threat and they, most likely, would regress. Funding proposals were submitted to the State in November 1999 but a response was still awaited.
