"For children on the continuum, these things are critical" • Parents fear that the structure of the school will endanger their children

(haipo) - Parents of students at the Ofer school, a school for students on the autistic continuum, claim that the school's alternative building, which is currently located on Derech Hayam street, cannot provide a safety solution for the students.

As I recall, due to the construction that is taking place in the building next to the school, it was necessary to transfer the students to the Mazor school in Kiryat Eliezer. The students are supposed to start their studies at the school in Kiryat Eliezer with the beginning of the school year, in a few weeks, but the parents fear that the new building may endanger the children.

The representative of the parents' committee at the school, Maria Boroboi: "At the beginning of the school year, we were told that next year the school will move to the Mazor school building. The school is intended for students aged 13-21. The move is temporary, until the building next to the school is built, but it is not clear how long It will take years. The transition was supposed to be during the school year, but we fought for it to be at the beginning of the year.

The building was not adapted to the number of students we have in the school. During the year, the municipality added rooms, because treatment rooms were also missing. The main problem that remains in the building itself is the shelter. The school is large, it also has kindergartens, there is an entrance on the left, which is intended for our students. There is one shelter for all the children in the building, which has neither water nor toilets. The answer we received is that if the security situation becomes more dangerous, the children will be in their homes and the shelter will only be used for the first alarm. In addition, there are not enough air conditioners in the building."

"may cause irreversible damage"

Borovoy points out that the thing that worries the parents the most is the yard. "The main problem in terms of safety is in the yard. There are several trees in the yard, and around each of them there is a square-shaped concrete block. In the event of a fall or an epileptic seizure, a child may, God forbid, fall on the concrete, which could cause permanent damage. The school's fence is not sufficient It is high, in this respect, exactly what is required, but in the yard, right near the wall, there are concrete benches. If the students climb the fence and run away from the school, there is no cover over the fence cloth.

The school is in the heart of the commercial center, and anyone passing by can see the hands. We want privacy for our children. In addition, the children themselves will be able to see the shopping center, which may make them want to cross the fence and go to the shopping center.

Another problem Borovoy points out is the many leaves that fall from the trees in the yard. According to her, this is a huge amount of leaves that have fallen from the trees, and since autistic children tend to put things in their mouths, the parents are afraid that this will happen, something that will endanger the lives of the students."

For these children it is critical

"This is not a situation that can be treated in a few minutes by sweeping the leaves, but with a huge amount of leaves. Our demand is that they clean up the leaves and install shading in the yard, which will also solve the problem of falling leaves. These problems may be less critical for children of other ages or children who are not on the continuum, but these children are dealing with tantrums, impulsivity and unpredictable behaviors, and there are not enough staff to prevent these things."

"If the deficiencies are not corrected, the children will not be able to start the school year"

According to Boroboi, if the deficiencies are not addressed, the children will not be able to start studying at school in September. "We had a tour of the school in June, I saw the things that needed to be taken care of, I tried to contact the municipality and got no response. Two weeks ago I went to the school again to get an impression, and I saw that the things had not been taken care of yet.

"The children will not be able to start the school year in this way. It is very important that they treat autistic children like normal children. The building received a safety permit from the municipality's safety officer, but I do not agree with that. These are children on the continuum, so you need to keep your eyes open. When you pass by schools normal, there is no possibility to look and see the children. Especially here, when there may be outbreaks, epileptic attacks and similar things, anyone will be able to pass and see. Another important thing is that the building has been renovated, but we are waiting for a thorough cleaning in the school before the start of the school year."

The Haifa Municipality informed Haifa: All the works that were carried out at the school, including the planning of the works and the program, were carried out in coordination with the school administration and the parents' committee, representatives of the Ministry of Education's office for special education and the approval of a safety consultant. The municipality will add additional shading to the school until the beginning of the school year. In any case, the director of education will continue to be in close contact with the school management and the parents' representatives in order to make sure that all the needs of the students and the schools are met and receive a full and safe response.