Public Petition

Public Petition TitleAutism Services

Public Petition TextIt’s time to Invest in Autism Services in Northern Ireland. Hundreds of Northern Ireland schoolchildren are having to wait too long for an autism assessment. There are almost 1300 children waiting on a queue for diagnosis; 900 have not been seen by health experts within the recommended 13 weeks and almost half, 476 have been waiting longer than 26 weeks with 78 forced to wait more than a year. On top of this, children who are found to have ASD face a struggle to get the appropriate help and support they need in school and outside of school. The delays in the Special Educational Needs (SEN) Statementing process is wreaking havoc on many families who have children with Autism. Many families are being forced to send their children to mainstream schools which do not have specialised staff or facilities to cater for their educational and developmental needs. It is time for the Northern Ireland Assembly to start delivering for some of the most vulnerable children in society who have been let down for far too long. We are calling for proper investment in autism services and we will table this petition before the Health Minister and Education Minister in the Northern Ireland Assembly. If you support us, please sign this petition.

Date Tabled to Business Office03/11/2015

Date Selected By Committee03/11/2015

Date of Plenary Debate09/11/2015