A frustrated mother of a 13-year-old child with Down syndrome, autism, ADHD and behavioural difficulties has spoken to Belfast Live about the challenges being faced at a special needs school
A parent has expressed her frustration over the closure of a school which she said saw children with special needs already travelling to school when families were informed classes would not be going ahead.
She told Belfast Live the incident is just one of a series of ongoing maintenance problems at Killard House School in Donaghadee, Co Down, that have led to repeated closures.
Lisa Grattan, 47, from Newtownards, said the continued disruption has had an ongoing impact on her 13-year-old son’s wellbeing and education.
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In an email seen by Belfast Live, sent to parents at 7.34am on Tuesday, January 13, families were informed that the school day would not be going ahead. The message said a burst pipe had caused flooding in classrooms, with Education Authority contractors carrying out work throughout Monday in an effort to resolve the issue.
However, by Tuesday morning heating had not been restored and the decision was taken to close the school for the day.
The email read: “We have had EA contractors out in school again for the last hour. Unfortunately, they have been unable to fix the issue and the heating is not working. We may not have hot water.
“This means that our classrooms and buildings will become very cold. Please, if you can, will you keep your child at home with you today?
“If they are already on the way to school, can I ask that you make arrangements to collect them as soon as possible today.”
Lisa said there is a “long-standing pattern” of works at the school which she described as “patch-up jobs”, adding that no alternatives are offered when children are unable to attend.
She said the repeated closures are having a detrimental impact on pupils’ education and causing significant distress, which for some children with complex needs can lead to harmful behaviours.
Parents are often informed at short notice that classes will not be available, she said, placing additional pressure on families and causing high levels of stress for children who rely heavily on routine and structure.
Lisa suggested better communication and longer notice periods would help families manage disruption, but added that long-term remedial works are ultimately needed to prevent ongoing closures.
Belfast Live has seen emails dating back to 2022 which show a pattern of closures linked to maintenance issues, most commonly relating to heating and pipe failures. Lisa said she believes this demonstrates an ongoing failure to provide a reliable heating system and poses a risk to pupils’ health and wellbeing.
She added that, in her view, this raises concerns about whether safeguarding and statutory duties owed to children with complex needs are being adequately met.
Lisa said: “It is almost as though the children are being treated as second-class citizens. If this was a mainstream school, people would be in uproar.
“This keeps happening and we are kept in the dark. No one from the Education Authority tells us anything. Our children are missing a lot of school and nothing is being done to address the overall problem.
“These children are vulnerable and need stability. What happens when this happens again next week, or the week after?
“The buildings are so old — we have to ask if the school is fit for purpose.”
Lisa said her oldest son, now 27, also attended the school and that closures linked to maintenance issues date back to that time. She said long-standing problems have repeatedly been addressed with short-term fixes.
Despite the infrastructure issues, she praised the teaching staff, saying they are doing everything they can in challenging circumstances.
“The teachers are like family members — they are absolutely fantastic,” she said.
“I have been their biggest advocate and cannot fault them.
“I hope things improve for them too, because the conditions they work under are very challenging and the environment is freezing.”
She added that disruption to routine has a significant impact on her son.
“Missing school affects his behaviour. The most important thing for him is his happiness, and missing classes makes him very unhappy.
“He doesn’t understand why he can’t go to school and doesn’t process short-notice changes. As parents, we do everything we can at home — all we want is a safe environment for our children when they go to school.”
Belfast Live put a number of questions to the Education Authority regarding parents’ concerns, the duration of the issues and acceptable notice periods for families.
An EA spokesperson said: “The Education Authority can confirm the temporary closure of Killard House School, Donaghadee, as a result of flooding caused by a burst pipe.
“This was discovered on Monday morning, and EA staff and contractors were on site that day.
“The impacted classrooms were closed as a precautionary measure to allow for essential investigations. The school maintained regular contact with families at the earliest point information was available.
“Unfortunately, it became necessary to close the school building entirely to ensure the health and safety of pupils while essential works took place.
“EA is working closely with the school and has urgently prioritised remedial works to allow the school to reopen.
“As a result of current budgetary restrictions, EA is only able to carry out emergency maintenance works. A lack of funding for routine and preventative maintenance has led to a significant backlog across the Northern Ireland school estate, increasing the risk of disruption due to deterioration of buildings.”
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