Covid-19: Services for special needs children 'went to zero overnight'

Essential services for many young people with disabilities 'went to zero overnight' due to lockdown, a Stormont committee has heard. MLAs were told that as a result, some children had harmed themselves and injured their parents. Donna Jennings, from the Evangelical Alliance, said the need for help increased, 'but services disappeared'. Schools, including most special schools, closed to the majority of pupils for a number of months. Many respite and other support services were also suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.