Schools across Northern Ireland are entrusted with the learning and well being of some of the most vulnerable children into their care. The recent private member's motion tabled by Alliance Party's Mr Chris Little, Member of Local Assembly and Department of Education Committee Chair, highlights the need to discuss the use of unregulated restrictive interventions and seclusion applied to children with additional needs and learning disabilities across schools in Northern Ireland. As a parent of a child who experienced unregulated restraint and seclusion in his previous special school, I would encourage you to consider the everyday harm caused by restraint and seclusion. I urge you to understand the importance of addressing this issue and to take action by asking your MLA to support the motion as an urgent non- political matter which affects all children and young people in receipt of education and support services. The current policies for managing behaviours of concern in schools stem from disciplinary guidance which is used to deal with misbehaviour or truancy. In practice this means children with additional emotional and support needs routinely experience restrictive interventions that range from coercive practices, to restraint and seclusion (including use of dark rooms) to manage and control behaviours of concern, frequently described as "challenging behaviour". Restrictive intervention are often applied without malice, as a result of training provided to schools and support staff. Such training is reportedly delivered to train teachers and support staff in how to intervene with children by the use of restraint or seclusion in a crisis. However, lack of adequate resourcing reportedly results in the use of 'crisis management' strategies on a daily basis - without regulation, recording or reporting to parents and families. This causes distress and everyday harm for our children and young people. Deescalation training and low arousal approaches such as those outlined by Professor Andy McDonnell (www.studio3.org) are examples of alternative strategies best suited to a child-friendly educational environment. These techniques offer an earlier intervention approach to support and reduce the need for hands on or confrontational and distressing physical interventions. Low arousal approaches to support prevent everyday harm. In contrast the reliance on the use of restraint or seclusion in health, social care and schools has been shown to traumatise children and young people who are often already vulnerable due to disabilities. There have to date been several reports published on the significant physical injuries, emotional trauma, and in some tragic cases even death. Reports below from Ireland and UK:- https:///www.challengingbehaviour.org.uk/driving-change/rrisclaunch.html http://www.inclusionireland.ie/content/news-items/1707/launch-shining-light-seclusion-and-restraint-schools Scotland and England have been campaigning on the prevention of restraint and seclusion. Beth Morrison of PABSS/ICARS worked alongside the University of Warwick analysing case studies from many families where their children had experienced significant harm on a daily basis by the use of restraint or seclusion in the course of their education. The harrowing findings of this report was launched at the House of Lords by Lady Sheila Hollins in February. The Department of Education have a Nurture Initiative to support the social and emotional needs of children with behaviour difficulties, which might otherwise create barriers in their education. We ask that restraint and seclusion be eradicated from all but last resort/crisis interventions. Instead of restrictive practices, ''nurturing'' children and young people with additional needs and learning disabilities seeks to provide a hands off, harm free environment. Thank you for supporting children and young people with additional support needs and intellectual disabilities, ensuring a safer, supported education where every child can thrive. Show your support on Twitter #EverydayHarm. See the British Association of Social Work NI's Twitter post - in opposition to restrictive interventions bit.ly/2Pe5IE0 and the supporting briefing paper for the private member's motion bit.ly/3jVLoQp "Difference is of the essence of humanity and therefore respect for that difference should be very very normal and very common" John Hume, Nobel Laureate.

Our industry moves Ireland , school children,Airports, train stations ,Ports ,Government Departments infant when groups of people need to be moved around we are the industry that does it . We are the ones that move Ireland with out us no one gets to their destinations in one vehicle . Our full size bus takes 6 cars of the road for every full size Coach .We transport school children on a daly basis .Our precious daily cargo is people dont wait till its to late when the operators are no longer in business . School transport have been totally ignored in relation to getting back on the road and having extra cleaning time cleaning equipment and not funding. Refund on vehicles that have been parked up since March on road tax,cvrt or extenstions Allowing this industry claim vat on all business like our counter parts in Northern Ireland.

This is a public pathway that has existed since the 1980s. 100s of children use this as their route to school every day, and the route around will add almost a kilometre to their journey. For kids starting as young as 5 years old, this will make walking infeasible, and will result in hundreds of additional car journeys. This will likely undo years of progress the school has made in promoting a green school commute policy. The school has been in existence long before the houses in this estate were even built, and the footpath access was negotiated by the school, at the time the Beaufield Manor estate was initially granted planing permission in the late 1980s. Ironically, this measure will also cause traffic mayhem at the front entrance to Beaufield Manor - the gated housing estate that decided to block the pedestrian access in the first place. It also prevents the Beaufield Manor residents having a pedestrian access shortcut towards Kilmacud, Sandyford Business Park, and the nearby Luas. It is in nobody's interest, and is very shortsighted.

Please support the permanent pedestrianisation of New Street, Malahide. At the moment a 10 week trial is in progress to guage the pros and cons of this measure. Some businesses have mounted an energetic campaign to return New Street to it's former position as a car dominated hostile space for human beings. Don't let them win! If this is reversed, it will be a major setback to efforts to provide livable and walkable communities for all of us.

Castlemartyr lacks community facilities. The residents of the community deserve adequate resources and facilities. We are approaching the 20 year mark since the original donation of funds and nothing has been accomplished. The residents of Castlemartyr want the money returned to where it was agreed the money should be utilized in a community facility.

This is the only publicly owned Golf Course in the South East and is much used. A change of use would take from the public an amenity that is valuable for low cost both for the council to provide and players to use. If anything sports facilities should be further developed for users of all ages.

Parents for Change is a grassroots activist group helping parents assert their voice in Irish society. The right to education is at the forefront of our constitution. Schools are important for the social, emotional and educational development of our children. Schools also provide the economic benefit of stable and cost-effective childcare in a society with a desperately inadequate childcare system. There has been a glaring omission in the roadmap to opening Irish society: schools. There are less than 7 weeks left until the start of the next educational term, yet there is no definitive plan for the education of our children. If the rest of Irish society can open safely, then so too can our schools, with the proper planning and investment. Other countries have shown us that this can be done safely and current HSE research suggests that schools are not a high risk setting for Covid 19. Where there is political will, there is a way. Parents are no longer willing or able to juggle working from home, caring for children and home schooling. Parents accepted this as an emergency measure, but this is no longer acceptable. Plans for blended learning are not a sustainable option for parents or children. The Covid 19 crisis has highlighted many inadequacies in the Irish educational system: years of systemic underfunding; poor pupil/teacher ratios (one of the highest in the OECD); poor school infrastructure including small classrooms; the use of prefabs and no hot water etc. The Department of Education needs to show decisive leadership on the issue of schools reopening fully. Schools cannot operate in a vacuum and direction must come from the top down. Parents for Change supports teachers, principals and teachers’ unions in their drive to open schools safely and are therefore advocating for immediate funding packages to be made available. If funding is in place schools can: · Open fully in September 2020. · Hire more teachers/SNAs to reduce class sizes and allow for social distancing. · Use substitute teachers to fill in for staff absences due to Covid or other illnesses. · Build temporary or permanent structures on school grounds to allow for smaller classes/social distancing. · Hire alternative venues for classes to allow for social distancing (local sports clubs etc). · Hire more cleaners. · Improve cleaning and hygiene standards, including availability of hot water. · Provide face coverings if age appropriate. · Implement strong policies on personal responsibility and sickness within the school community. · Arrange staggered pick up and drop off times for pupils. · Provide safe school transportation. · Provide technology to pupils where necessary to allow them to participate in online learning if in social isolation/quarantine. · Provide extra support for vulnerable children where there might be limited capacity for teaching in the home and ensure they are not left behind. If blended learning is used, it must be for short, specific time periods (e.g. educating children during social isolation/quarantine). Parents need to be able to access government funded paid leave from work during this period and the government must negotiate this with employers. Schools, ECL and childcare are the bedrock of the economy and should be treated like frontline, essential services. Without them, parents cannot participate in the economic recovery of our country. We must invest now in education both for the health of our economy and our nation. We cannot afford not to. Please sign our petition.

Remote learning is not a feasible long term substitute to in-school education. Re-opening of schools should be prioritised over the aviation and tourism industries.

Update: OPW have released this. All gates bar Knockmaroon open from Friday July 10th. Knockmaroon will open when works completed. Truly hope lessons can be learned from this and all stakeholders are considered in future planning. Thank you all for your support!! https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3500180506661143&id=132971523382075&anchor_composer=false Phoenix Park is a worldclass amenity to the people who live nearby, on day trips, and tourists alike. The decision to only have 2 gates open to vehicular traffic is seriously restricting access to the park. Traffic volumes are increasing now that we are coming out of lockdown. Congestion in the surrounding areas is already a huge issue. This will only increase with these access routes cut off without an alternative solution. It can now take up to an hour to get from one end of the park to the other ; particularly at weekends with increased demand for the Zoo, Farmleigh and the Visitor Centre. Engine emissions from cars sitting on Chesterfield Avenue must surely be offsetting any potential environmental gain. Parts of the Park will become no go areas due to their isolation. There are no plans for an increased OPW presence with the gate closures. This decision seems to have been rushed through with little forward thinking and engagement with local communities. Give the park back to the people and then work on alternatives to reduce car traffic.

Airbnb is a a major factor on homelessness. As Airbnb is so unregulated many landlords are evicting tenants to turn their premises into nightly lets. This is causing the massive reduction of properties available in the private rental market. Therefore pushing up the cost of rents. The People of Ireland are living in hotels and B&Bs while the tourists are living in the houses. Until this sector is regulated and the rules enforced this will continue to happen. Covid 19 has highlighted this, we saw 1000s and 1000s of houses lying empty because travel restrictions. I am urging the Government to do someting about this once and for all.

Ireland needs a long-term plan to fix unfairness in how women, girls, and other groups are treated. Countries like the UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark, and Canada have special government jobs, called Minister for Women or something similar, to look after these issues. It's time for Ireland to think about having a Minister for Women, just like these other places do. This job should be someone's only job, and they need to have everything they need - like time, power, and resources - to really make a difference. A Minister for Women would work on finding and changing the barriers that make it hard for everyone in Ireland to have the same chances in jobs, school, sports where they live, and other important areas of life. They would make sure no one is left out or treated unfairly because of their gender, if they're married or not, their family situation, how old they are, if they have a disability, who they love, their race, their religion, how much money they have, or if they're part of the Traveller community.

#TheDCYAMustStay It is welcome that in the proposed Programme for Government the DCYA appears to be included. It is imperative that DCYA is retained, and the proper support and budget requirements that would allow the Department to fulfil it's duties and responsibilities to children are provided. Children need a strong voice in government now more than ever. Children are one of the most vulnerable groups in society. There are more than 1.25 million children and young people in Ireland. That represents 25% of our population. Children have suffered hugely during Covid—19. They have experienced worry and loss in many ways: illness/death of loved ones, parental unemployment, school closure, transitions and rites of passage have been abruptly cancelled, interrupted friendships, loss of the freedom to be a child, new stress and worry, and much more. Some of these children will need extra support to help them deal with what they’ve experienced. For some there will be difficulties with addressing the future and adapting to the new and unexpected world that lies ahead. Some will have suffered abuse, neglect, domestic violence and other trauma behind closed doors as their family struggles to survive, and many live without the safe space provided by trusted adults in their extended family, schools, sports clubs, and community services. Prior to the Covid 19 emergency government figures indicated that 11% or 134,000 children and young people lived in consistent poverty, for example not owning a warm winter coat or being able to heat their home adequately. 3,555 children and young people faced day to day difficulties living in homeless accommodation and another 1,674 in direct provision accommodation. Many parents had difficulty accessing readily available and appropriate mental health or disability services for their children and teenagers. Additionally many parents were struggling with the cost of quality child care and afterschool care. These worries and concerns haven’t gone away. We need a minister focused on children and young people at the cabinet table to continue to develop our children’s services and bring children’s voices to discussions and decisions. We are deeply concerned about the possibility that the functions of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA) may be carved up, subsumed, or amalgamated with other departments in the next government. We are concerned about the possible downgrading of the key role of Minister for Children, and the danger that this will again take us backwards in a history that has not always treated children well. 2011 brought hope for children, with the appointment of the first full ministerial appointment dedicated to the children of Ireland and the establishment of the DCYA. In November 2012, the referendum on the rights of the child resulted in the addition of Article 42A to the Irish Constitution, placing an emphasis in law on the best interests of the child. The establishment of the new Child and Family Agency in 2014 saw the separation of the business of looking after children from the delivery of health services. There was hope that we were awakening from our historical past of disregard for children, their rights, voice and visibility in society and public policy. There was hope that this would be the foundation for ‘brighter and better futures’ for the children of Ireland. We need a Minister for Children who will continue the work to ensure that services supporting children and young people’s well-being, welfare and protection are properly resourced. The DCYA has undertaken so much necessary work since its establishment, work that has positively impacted on children’s lives in this country. There remains so much more to achieve going forward if we are to tackle issues such as child poverty, child and family homelessness, equal access to services, proper health provision, protection and welfare of children, and deliver a fair and equitable Ireland for all our children.