On Tuesday 29th September the Belfast News Letter posted a report based on Kieran Donnelly’s Audit Report into SEN services. He found that it was “not financially sustainable” and reveal “the expenditure over the past five years has exceeded £1.3 billion”. newsletter.co.uk.
Ben Lowry, the Deputy Editor of the Belfast News Letter then tweeted that this was “another colossal expenditure” and “like welfare reform and NHS reform it’s easy to duck it and let it soak of vast amounts of precious public funds”.
This is another colossal expenditure. It’s been brewing for years. It’s plainly not sustainable yet Stormont says little about it because it sounds harsh to curb it. Like welfare reform and NHS reform it’s easy to duck it and let it soak of vast amounts of precious public funds https://t.co/RMUOcqAKas
— Ben Lowry (@BenLowry2) September 29, 2020
There has been widespread anger and revulsion from many disabled people because of these comments made by Ben. It might come as a surprise to Ben that disabled people make up 19.5% of the local population and we contribute £250 billion to the UK economy. This far exceeds the £1.3 billion covered by Kieran’s cost for SEN services.
Many parents having been fighting for years to get funding for the basic rights for their child, so they can have an education that is the right of any non-disabled child. Yet Ben believes that this needs to be cut further.
Many parents are also fighting a long battle to end seclusion and restraints in schools as well, so their children are not disadvantaged further. If this were stopped, it would save money in the budget. Parents are fighting up to and over 80 weeks for a statement for their child to gain support in schools. A NICCYS report called #toolittletoolate, shows the inequality of SEN in mainstream settings.
These services have been decimated and deprioritised under austerity. Disabled people bore the brunt of cuts to welfare too, and many died because of choice made that “we could not afford” things which are essential to people’s basic security.
Commentary like this perpetuates the myth that “there is no money”—there was enough money for RHI. People like Lowry present austerity as necessity, whereas it has always been a choice.
We need to stop focusing on disabled people and the adjustments we need, as a drain on the budget. We need to start focusing on equal rights and opportunities for disabled people.
Just look at disabled people in history, Florence Nightingale, Stephen Hawking and WB Yeats. All made value and significant changes to society, people and history. Who are we to deny disabled people in the future?
We deserve the same rights to education and have the same opportunity to life as non-disabled people Ben. Without us, society is a shell. Without us, the economy collapses.
I call for Ben to make a full and public apology for the hurt and pain he caused disabled people with his thoughtless tweet yesterday and to understanding the reinforcement of further negative stereotyping he has created with his commentary. We will accept nothing less.
Nothing About Us, Without Us.
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Lowry’s comments were appalling, insensitive, cruel and callous.
As a non-disabled person, I felt for everyone – the families and the children dismissed by his callous statements.
Well said dermot!
Well said Dermot. We need to move away from the narrative of disabled people’s reasonable adjustments being budget-busting and instead focus their equal right to be full & equal members of society.
I support this statement.
My autistic son attended a school for children with severe learning disabilities and now attends a day centre for adults with complex needs, both of which depend on “precious public funds”. My son’s right to an education that met his assessed needs is enshrined in our legislation. His right to community care and services to help him as an adult are also enshrined in our legislation. He and all disabled people are of innate value, even if they do not contribute to society in ways that are recognised and respected by people who only value earning potential or capital. His contribution to the lives of those who know and love him is immeasurable and irreplaceable.
Moreover, my job as an education rights advisor gives allows me to talk every day with parents who are struggling for the provision their children need to be able to access an education. Parents are shocked and horrified when they first encounter the system which is so heavily skewed in favour of the state agencies and they find they need to fight over and over to get supports, to have assessments, to get something approaching the right provision. Many give up, it’s just too draining. So many children are failed.
I am appalled by Ben Lowry’s public pronouncements. He also tweeted “it is not cruel to want to control this expenditure”. What form does such control take? Does it mean reverting to the days before the Warnock report was issued when disabled children were deemed ineducable and consigned to institutions? Lowry needs to apologise for sharing disablist and damaging views and then educate himself about the realities of the SEN system, listen to disabled people and carers.
Proud of you Dermot.
Sending love and solidarity to everyone impacted by such callous statements. Disabled people deserve education, we deserve adequate, sustainable funding and we deserve not to be seen merely as a financial burden to be controlled. Thank you for this Dermot!
Well done Dermot. I honestly thought by now Mr Lowry would have had the integrity to apologise to every disabled person or to the parents of disabled and SEN children for his callous disrespectful tweet. Wasn’t I a fool !!
I thoughts the comments by Ben Lowry were – at the very least – unwarranted. I would very much like him to make a full retraction in print by way of an apology.
This is hateful and needs to be called out!! I can’t believe that in 2020 this is the attitude to disabled people and their rights!! Lowry needs fired!! #WeShallNotBeRemoved !!! This is what discrimination looks like!!
How many disabled children have had their life chances ruined by the failure of the Education Authority to provide adequate provision? This situation has been going on for years so perhaps Mr Lowry needs to investigate why. If that’s what he meant by his comments it certainly didn’t come across that way and it offended many involved in the disabled & carers community. His choice of words demonstrate his ableist cavalier attitude towards people who he assumes are inferior unequal and unworthy. Shame on Mr Lowry, he hit a raw nerve when he tweeted and I’m not surprised that he got such a backlash.
1 in 5 school children in N.I. with special needs that is 20% of our young people. The lack of SEN support for them now will only mean a bigger demand on ‘precious public funds’ when they grow up denied of early intervention. If Ben Lowry really knew the suffering these children endure on a daily basis because of an inadequate education system and the heartache parents have fighting for their rights, he may not have said what he did.
Solidarity to you and all affected by the shocking, heartless and ablest comments from the Deputy Editor of The News Letter Dermot.
It is interesting to note that he draws parallels with welfare reform and NHS reform, both of which have failed spectacularly and both of which are driven in the interests of making cuts to vital public services affecting the most vulnerable in society.
The Auditor’s “scathing” Report highlights the need “to ensure the provision is sufficient to meet the needs of all children with SEN” – this starts and stops with Government funding, and with a right wing Tory government hell bent on austerity this will prove more difficult than ever to achieve.
People power can force change, however, as we witnessed in March of this year when the public forced the government to take action in relation to the COVID pandemic. The power lies with each and every one of us.
The fact that 85% of statements (legally binding documents issued by the Education Authority detailing a child’s needs and setting out what specialist provision they require within the education system) are issued outside the 26-week statutory limit is completely unacceptable. This was something that made the news this summer, to the shame of the Department and EA. Indeed, I was informed only yesterday (1st October) by the Department of Education that five children are still remaining to be placed in special schools – this is simply not good enough.
Well done in speaking out against this disturbing and offensive rhetoric Dermot, and I look forward to the receipt of a humble and sincere apology.
Perhaps the public outcry and outrage will have encouraged him to reflect on his expressed viewpoint and the hurtful and thoughtless words he has used.
Cllr. Emmet McAleer
Independent
Fermanagh & Omagh District Council
Solidarity with the disabled. No to discrimination.
Very well said Dermot but such a shame it even needed to be said. How thoughtless, hurtful and prejudiced of Ben to print those comments.
I wonder if he would still feel the same if he were a parent of a child with a disability.
Ignorant dinosaur spouting dangerous, inflammatory and discriminatory language. Incredibly stupid and nasty.