A strong swell of public support was clearly evident as the Autism Parents Athlone group hosted a protest walk through the streets of the town to highlight the urgent need to provide Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD ) classes within primary and secondary school settings.
Departing from Ss Peter and Paul Church on Saturday afternoon, in excess of 60 collective spirits walked en masse along the Orange Loop which encompasses the centre of Athlone and received vast support from onlookers who applauded the cause as the march progressed.
A new ASD class has been confirmed for Athlone Community College prior to the start of the new academic year in September and speaking to the Athlone Advertiser on Tuesday afternoon, Claire Earley, founding member of the Autism Parents Athlone group, stated that this welcome development must be replicated in similar schools within the town.
“While Autism Parents Athlone warmly welcome the news that there will be an ASD class available to autistic children in the new academic year, more needs to be achieved in this regard. This announcement is a great start but we need to build upon such progress. There are too many autistic children travelling long distances to avail of an education and now is the time to bring them home to Athlone. This is the goal of Autism Parents Athlone,” Ms Earley asserted.
Referencing the protest walk on Saturday afternoon, Ms Earley lauded the support shown from the local public noting that awareness of this important issue is continuing to grow.
“Not often do we witness such a public protest walk in Athlone and thankfully, there was great support shown as we progressed along the Orange Loop route and I would like to express my gratitude to all those local businesses who gave of their support for our cause on Saturday afternoon. We will continue to create awareness of this issue through our social media channels in the coming times,” Ms Earley stated.
Despite confirmation of the new ASD class planned for Athlone Community College, Ms Earley stated that the group intend to use a public forum in late September or early October to highlight their continuing concerns should no similar education facilities materialise in the coming times.
“Such was the outpouring of support for the protest walk on Saturday that we have since created an Autism Parents Athlone Supporters facebook page to which 130 members have joined to date,” Ms Earley concluded.
Cllr Keena commends Autism Parents Athlone
Cllr Frankie Keena praised the work of the Autism Parents Athlone group on their campaign to highlight the lack of school places in both the primary and secondary schools for children with autism or additional needs.
“The march through the streets of Athlone on Saturday afternoon last was very well organised and delivered a strong public awareness message on this important issue, it was so heartening to see onlookers clapping their hands and beeping their horns as the march progressed.
“It is completely unfair on parents and their children with the lack of such school places which results in them having to travel long distances to go to school and personally speaking, this is discrimination against such children and an issue which must be addressed and corrected as soon as possible.
“As Chairman of the Board of Athlone Community College I am delighted with the recent announcement that a unit will be provided in this school for the forthcoming academic year and I would like to thank the school principal, Eileen Donoghue, my fellow Board of Management members and the LWETB for all the work conducted during this past year prior to receiving approval for this unit.
“While this is welcome news, I do feel that fellow secondary schools in Athlone and the immediate Midlands region environs, as well as local primary schools, also need to provide similar facilities. At the end of the day parents and children are entitled to have a choice and to source a school with the necessary facilities near where they live,” Cllr Keena asserted.
