Positive Steps Together CLG

10/04/2026

It was a pleasure to receive a donation of €16,000 from our very own Eileen Condon, this was from the proceeds of the sales of her very successful book, thank you Eileen, the book is amazing and a great success, very well done

10/04/2026

A new Adult Autism Social Group is now open in South Tipperary! 💬💙

This welcoming group offers:
🤝 Regular in-person meetups
💻 Zoom meetups
📱 WhatsApp chat
🌟 And plenty more ways to connect!

It’s a friendly space for adults to socialise, share experiences, and build meaningful connections in a supportive environment. 💛

📍 Based in the south of Tipperary
🔎 Find them on Facebook by searching:
“South Tipperary Adult Autism Social Group”

09/04/2026

13 rejection letters followed when the McMahon family tried to secure their son Riley, who is diagnosed autistic with a moderate intellectual disability, an appropriate secondary school place – a rejection from every single school they applied to.

While Riley’s twin sister Savannah, who is neurotypical, was heading off full of excitement to start the academic year at her new big school, Riley was left behind.

“Hard isn’t the word for how that felt,” dad Robbie says. “Riley was seeing Savannah getting ready for school and pulling his own school bag out and looking for his lunch to be made. The first morning Savannah went off to school, Riley sat by the window, looking for his school transport to pick him up.”

The reasons for schools rejecting Riley have varied from issues over catchment area and criteria, but the root issue is that there are simply not enough SEN places to cater for the level of need in Ireland.

“One school Riley applied to last year had 30 places to give out and 113 applications,” McMahon says. “We’ve already had seven rejection letters for September this year.”

What frustrates him is that the crisis over school placements is not an unforeseen one. The data is there and yet there’s still a lack of provision.

“It’s a yearly event and it shouldn’t be. There’s enough money in the country to build more special schools, but there is no political will to change the system.

“They view our children as never being voters, so why bother looking out for them? So now I push parents – when their children with additional needs turn 18, register them on the electorate, get them to vote. You can bring a vote for them as a carer, because at least then their voice is heard, their vote is counted.”

Read more on the Irish Independent website.

09/04/2026

We were thrilled with the donation of €1,090 from Nire Fourmilewater Gaa after their very successful Brain of Ballymac evening recently, it was a great night which challenged the brain for a lot of us 🤣

09/04/2026

We are extremely proud of and so delighted to accept a donation of €5000 from Cllr Máirín McGrath after her victory in the Ardfinnan GAA Club Quid Games recently, very well done Máirín 👍

28/03/2026

20/02/2026

Groups representing autistic people are calling to be included in the disabled parking scheme, and for it to be extended to people with "invisible disabilities".

18/02/2026

We are delighted again this year to accept a donation of €150 from Tullaghmeelan, Knocklofty Parish - Clonmel Union of Parishes after their Christmas Carol Service organised by Sue Esplan & Team, it’s always a fantastic night and they never forget us when dividing up the proceeds (this pic is from last year 😊)

17/02/2026

There have been calls for clarity after a number of schools around the country were told they may have their Special Needs Assistant (SNA) allocation cut from next September.