Parents of children with additional needs have pleaded with the Department of Education to find school places for their children.
A protest was held outside the Department this morning where around 50 parents and special needs assistants marched from O’Connell St in Dublin.
Each one of them with their own stories of their struggle to find places for their children.
The groups from different parts of Dublin say it's "shameful" that their children do not have school places, and have called for immediate action from the government.
The group says a national demonstration will be held in the coming weeks if there is no action from the State.
Nicola O'Dea's son Sean has autism and is without a school place.
She says she's had to give up her job to ensure he can get some education at home.
"He is going to regress if he doesn't continue to get the supports, the structure and routine in school.
"There is only so much a parent can do. He needs the social interaction and needs the structure of school.
"He is looking at his sister going back to school, she is going into 2nd year in secondary school, his brother is going into 5th year and I don't know what to say to him."
Charlotte Cahill, who’s 5-year-old daughter Cyra has autism and other additional needs.
"Every morning, throughout the summer, she has been coming down the stairs, getting her school bag and indicating that she wants to go to school. I try my best to explain to her that it is not time to go to school.
"A lot of the time she lashes out and she will hit me or hit herself and it takes a lot to bring her back from that."
Mandy Scanlan’s daughter Paige was able to secure an extra year in pre-school, but she’s worried about what’s coming next year.
"Paige's cousin is starting primary school next week and that should be Paige. She has to look at other children going out in their brand new school uniforms and I'm not getting to do that for her."
Some parents trying more than 30 schools to find a place for their child and Mandy says she's also been waiting over 4 years for an assessment of need.
"She is not getting to do that (go to school) for herself and that's her entitlement. We have no choice but to keep her pre-school for another year because we couldn't get the services or the assessment."
The protesters called on the government, namely the Taoiseach Simon Harris and the Education Minister Norma Foley, to intervene.
They claim their children are being treated like ‘2nd class citizens’, and that the smartphone ban the Minister is embarking on is the least of their worries.
Reporting by Andrew Lowth
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