Tasmanian Disability Education Reform Lobby founder Kristen Desmond said more consequences should be in place for schools after it was revealed a girl enrolled in a Northern Tasmanian school had a sensory tent removed from her classroom and replaced with an opened-up cardboard box.

The girl, who has been diagnosed with autism, used the sensory tent to assist her with sensory overload.

Ms Desmond, who has been working with the girl’s family for nearly a year, said the consequences for the girl and her family were clear, but it appeared there were no ramifications for schools.

“Clearly we have a long way to go if a school considers this an appropriate adjustment,” Ms Desmond said.

The issue was raised in Parliament by Opposition Education spokeswoman Michelle O’Byrne, who held up a picture of the opened-up cardboard box during Question Time on Wednesday.

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Ms Desmond said the consequences for the parents were more than those experienced by the school.

It’s believed the girl has been suspended at least three times this year due to behavioural issues.

“It puts parents in an untenable situation, but this is not just about this one child,” Ms Desmond said.

She said “you would be surprised” to know how often this happens in government schools.

An Education Department spokesperson said the state government was committed to implementing the recommendations from the Ministerial taskforce to improve support for students with a disability.

“We will continue to progress implementation of the recommendations and will continue to monitor the educational outcomes for students with a disability,” the spokesperson said.

“Since 2016, the implementation of the taskforce’s recommendations has seen a positive transition taking place across schools, supporting all students to achieve quality outcomes through their participation in an inclusive, high quality education system that is responsive to their needs.”

Data released early in the year by the Education Department shows there are 85 school psychologists who work across public schools in the state. This is an increase of two positions since 2017.

In 2014, there were 781 students enrolled in public schools who had the highest needs (are on the register for people with severe disabilities). That number grew to 817 in 2018.

To cater for that need, there were 146.5 full time equivalent people enrolled as support staff in 2014. This includes psychologists, social workers and speech pathologists. That number grew to 165.35 in 2018.

Ms Desmond said the reality was that this child did not need to be in a support school, but structures needed to be in place to support children living with disabilities who were enrolled in public schools.

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