Thousands of Quebec children with disabilities kept out of school due to lack of resources

While kids across Quebec return to school after the holidays, nine-year-old Ellie isn’t among them.

“I was so mad at my parents,” she said. “Cause I want to go to school.”

CBC News is withholding Ellie’s last name to reduce online harm and bullying. She normally attends St. Lawrence School on Montreal’s South Shore, but this year, the school hasn’t been able to provide her with the support she needs and she’s been staying home since November.

Ellie is autistic and has dyslexia. Her school had been providing extra support, such as staff who’d help her get breaks when needed, calm her stress and help her with her reading skills. But this year, that support wasn't what it once was, and her mother says it had a significant impact on her daughter. 

“It was incredibly distressing for Ellie, for her classmates and the staff of the school, and of course, for us as her family," said Celyn Harding-Jones, describing her daughter's "meltdowns" that were "unbelievable out of control" without the extra support.

That’s why Harding-Jones said her family and the school decided to take a break from class. 

The school now provides a tutor three times a week for two hours a day. 

Harding-Jones has taken a break of her own — stopping work to help her daughter get back to school.

“This is why I'm sort of speaking out because I'm sure that there are other children out there and other families who are struggling immensely,” she said.

Harding-Jones isn’t the only one feeling the effects.

Two weeks before the end of last school year, at a time when school boards and school service centres are normally finalizing their budgets, administrators were told by the Education Ministry to reduce their spending by $570 million.

While most administrators said it was too soon to give a breakdown of where and how the cuts would be applied, they warned of devastating consequences and said parents are right to be worried.

Chris Craig, chair of the Riverside School Board, which oversees St. Lawrence School, said the decision to keep Ellie home was collaborative.

“She wasn't asked to leave. They chose to homeschool, which I think in the short term might be a good idea,” he said. “They're looking at potentially reintegrating next year.”