'No nursery place for my son is like a kick in the teeth'

A mother has said a decision for a special school to not accept nursery pupils this year "feels like a kick in the teeth".

Michaela Hoynes had unsuccessfully applied for a place at Knockavoe School in Strabane, County Tyrone, for her three-year-old son Aiden, who has special educational needs (SEN).

Knockavoe School is their nearest special school - and she said Aiden would miss out on the pre-school support he needs.

The Education Authority (EA) said the intake to the nursery class was being temporarily paused because there was more demand for a second primary one class at the school.

Michaela said: "I understand that obviously P1 places are at a premium as well and there's obviously a lot of children with needs but I just think the way it comes to my mind is like it's robbing Peter to pay Paul."

She is now exploring other options for Aiden ahead of the new school year in September.

The EA has said nursery children who would have attended Knockavoe will be "supported through mainstream nursery placements".

Aiden currently has no formal diagnosis but Michaela said he has been assessed as needing specialist support at school.

Attending the nursery at Knockavoe, she added, would have given him that support as he began his school journey.

When his application was turned down, she initially thought it was because "children with greater need were getting those places".

But she soon learned from other parents that the nursery would not operate in the upcoming academic year.

"It is just really disappointing for Aiden. He's never experienced a nursery or a pre-school setting and now he's not getting that - and all the specialist support that goes alongside special school placement. He's going to miss out on all that," she said.

That, she added, is "incredibly frustrating, very upsetting, maddening".

"Anything to do with special needs family you just you have to sort of fight for every last thing."

As first reported in the Strabane Chronicle, the EA said demand for special school places continues to rise across Northern Ireland, and most schools are now at capacity.

"At Knockavoe School, primary one demand exceeded nursery for September 2026. The school and EA carefully considered all available options, given accommodation pressures, temporarily pausing nursery intake to establish a second primary one class was deemed the most appropriate solution," an EA spokesperson said.

It added: "Children who would have attended the Knockavoe nursery class will be supported through mainstream nursery placements, with additional resourcing provided by EA, where required to meet their needs effectively and safely."

The EA said the decision to pause the nursery intake was not "taken lightly" and reflected the "the significant lack of capacity across special schools".

"Whilst we recognise this will be disappointing for some families, we would reassure them that additional land adjacent to the school has now been acquired, and EA is working to increase site capacity," the EA added.