When Sophie Brady appeared on camera for Crisis In The Classroom, a new documentary examining the crisis facing Ireland’s special needs assistants, she spoke openly about one of the job’s most troubling realities: the lack of security.

Although she had spent two years working in the same secondary school, the Meath native still had no guarantee that she would have a position when the school reopened in September.

“I presumed I’d have to re-interview, like I’ve had to do every other year,” says Sophie, 27. “But I thought I’d be in a good position because I’d been doing the role for two years already.”

That assumption proved to be wrong.

After filming the Virgin Media documentary, presented by Ireland AM’s Eric Roberts and airing on Monday, Sophie applied twice for her role but received no response. She later discovered that her school email account had been deactivated.

“I was like, ‘oh my god, my school email is turned off’,” she says. “I was concerned because I hadn’t heard anything about even an interview date.”

With only days remaining before the new school year began, Sophie contacted the school directly. She says she was told that an automated email wishing her “best of luck” should have reached her.

“I didn’t get an interview,” she says sadly. “I didn’t get to say goodbye to the kids.”

The two other SNAs who had worked with Sophie were later interviewed and returned to their roles. Two more SNAs were also hired after the school opened a new special class.

Sophie says she had never received negative feedback about her work, making the way her employment ended both distressing and deeply upsetting.

“If they knew in June that they weren’t going to employ me again, why not let me know?” she says. “Give me enough notice to say goodbye to the kids and enough time to apply for other positions.

“That was the school I wanted and, in my heart of hearts, that’s the school I thought I’d be going back to.”

The timing is particularly painful. While filming Crisis In The Classroom, Sophie described the precarious nature of SNA employment. By the time the programme airs, she has lost her own position — prompting a stark conclusion.

“I don’t want to be an SNA any more because I’ve just been mistreated the whole time that I’ve done it,” she says. “It doesn’t feel worth it.

“Nobody becomes an SNA because they want a slap on the back every ten minutes. I didn’t need anyone to tell me I was doing a good job. But we deserve to be treated with respect. I just can’t deal with every summer not having a position and having to re-interview.”

It is a heartbreaking conclusion to a career Sophie says she truly loved.

“I’ve done everything from toileting and lifting children out of wheelchairs into hoists to looking after their medication,” she says. “I’ve rung ambulances for children who have had epileptic fits and seizures. You’re supporting them through their exams, special centres, regulation and movement between classes.”

During her two years at the school, Sophie says she supported approximately 11 or 12 girls, ranging from first-year students to those of Leaving Cert age. In a secondary school setting, even the seemingly ordinary task of moving between classrooms can prove overwhelming for a child with additional needs.

‘Sometimes they’ve come from a primary school with only 12 or 15 in their class and then there are 120 in the whole year,’ she says. ‘For parents, it helps knowing, “OK, my little Amy has Sophie. She has her SNA. She knows there’s going to be a friendly face there to greet her at nine o’clock.”

‘Kids, particularly with autism, thrive on routine and the same faces all the time.’

Sophie first arrived at the school as maternity cover in January two years ago. The SNA she was replacing did not return and Sophie stayed on, but says she never had the security of knowing the job was hers permanently.

‘I never signed a thing,’ she says.

It is a precariousness that extends beyond the school gates. Sophie lives with her long-term partner, musician Conor Kavanagh, and says the lack of a permanent position inevitably makes it difficult to plan financially for the future.

‘I could do the best job all year, be my best self, and I still have to re-interview and still have that threat hanging over me every single summer that somebody else is going to swoop in and take the job that I’ve been doing,’ she says. ‘That’s exactly what happened.’

There is another reason Sophie became so invested in being a trusted adult for children. She has previously spoken publicly about suffering sexual abuse during her own childhood at the hands of her cousin David Hamilton, who was convicted and jailed.

Her experience, she says, directly influenced her decision to become an SNA.

‘That is genuinely the reason,’ she says. ‘There are so many women who are in caring professions like SNAs who have a similar kind of past to me. It makes complete sense to want to be the adult that you didn’t have.’

Her childhood also left Sophie acutely aware that a child who appears fine may be anything but.

‘I feel like I’m pretty switched on to it because I know what my masks were,’ she says. ‘I knew how to mask and who to mask around and how to get away with, “Oh Sophie, are you a bit quiet today?” “No, no, I’m fine.” People just believed that and took your word as gospel.’

It is something she says she later recognised in young people at school.

‘There are kids absolutely drowning in anxiety and discomfort, but they’re masking that they’re OK,’ she says. ‘Just don’t call on me, don’t ask me to answer that question. I’m never going to put up my hand, I’m stuck to the chair with anxiety.

‘I can tell by the look on their face. I can tell by their shoulders looking really tight and their fists are clenched and their jaw is tight. There are little things like that I would pick up on.’

For Sophie, one of the privileges of being an SNA was becoming the person a young person trusted enough to approach.

‘I’ve had girls telling me, “I’m struggling with X, Y and Z, but I can’t tell my teacher”,’ she says. ‘To be the trusted adult that they feel comfortable telling that stuff to is such an honour. You can say, “Tell me and I can bring it to someone. We’ll figure out a plan.”’

It’s not the first time Sophie has found herself advocating for people who are not being heard.

Following her own experience of the criminal justice system, she became an outspoken campaigner on the treatment of sexual violence survivors, including the use of complainants’ private counselling records in sexual offence trials.

‘I was literally in the Dáil, I’d say, six times last year trying to get the use of counselling notes banned,’ she says.

She recalls sitting in the public gallery while TDs spoke about survivors’ concerns and says she was angered to see Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan ‘scrolling’ through his phone during part of the proceedings.

‘We had sent big massive emails, survivors and victims, about what we need and what our expectations are going forward for future victims,’ Sophie says.

‘Because, let’s be real, it’s too late for us, our day in court is done, we’ve gone through all of this. So it’s for future survivors.’

Legislation introduced this year proposes significant changes to the disclosure of counselling and other personal records in sexual offence cases, including removing the existing provision under which a complainant can waive their right to non-disclosure without a court hearing.

For Sophie, however, the frustration is familiar – those directly affected having to fight to make themselves heard. ‘I’ve never known my life without advocacy, I suppose,’ she says.

That advocacy has also brought Sophie a sizeable social media audience. People she has never met regularly contact her to tell her about some of the most traumatic experiences of their lives.

‘I don’t know what it is,’ she says. ‘People tell me their whole life story in my DMs. I think it’s so beautiful that they feel like they can open up to me.’

Far harder has been the abuse Sophie herself has received for speaking publicly. She says some of the most aggressive messages have come from people she describes as being on the far-Right, and that threats have at times become frighteningly specific. ‘People were literally saying that they were going to come to the house and bomb my car,’ she says. ‘It went way too far and it started affecting me and Conor. He was worried about me even going to the gym late at night. I’m genuinely at a point where I’m not comfortable in a lot of ways.’

Being called an ‘attention seeker’ is particularly painful, she says, because it echoes something she heard repeatedly growing up. The cumulative effect means Sophie has begun stepping back from some of the advocacy that has occupied so much of her life.

‘I will never step away from it full-time,’ she says. ‘But I have had to take a little step back.’

This leaves her in an unusual position – in a matter of months, the two roles through which she had channelled so much of her instinct to help other people have changed.

‘I’m not in the school, I’m not advocating for sexual victims. I don’t know what to do,’ she says candidly.

One constant is Conor, her partner for five years, who she has known since primary school.

‘I’m very lucky,’ she says, adding that his support has been invaluable through everything she has experienced.

But suddenly finding herself without a job has inevitably added pressure at a time when the couple are renting and trying to build a future together.

‘We are lucky he has a well-paid job,’ she says. ‘I put that pressure on myself that I need to be working and I need to figure this out and that I’m on a time limit now. It is such a shame because I did love what I was doing.’

It’s difficult not to notice the cruel symmetry of her experience; she went into special needs education partly because she wanted to become the adult she herself had needed as a child, and she became an advocate for sexual violence survivors because she wanted the next person entering the justice system to have an easier experience than she did.

‘I can’t imagine myself doing anything else other than helping people, in whatever capacity that is,’ she says. ‘I have a caregiver within me. I need to feel like I’m helping. This is my purpose.

‘If I feel like this after I’ve only been doing it for four years, and I genuinely loved it, and my passion for it isn’t enough to keep me going, how many SNAs are leaving?

‘How many people have left to retrain as special education teachers or are leaving the country altogether? How many SNAs have we lost?’

It is one of the wider questions raised by Crisis In The Classroom, as Eric Roberts travels around Ireland meeting children, parents, principals and SNAs, and examining whether the system can cope with increasing demand.

Sophie hopes the documentary reaches everybody, not just families who attempt to avail of the SNA system.

‘If you don’t have a neurodiverse child or this isn’t in your world, a lot of people just aren’t aware,’ she says. ‘If this documentary brings light to the regular, average person who doesn’t have any kind of needs in their world, doesn’t have an SNA or hasn’t had dealings with special education, it might just make them go, “oh my god, we need to stand with these parents here”.

‘If we can make it better for the next set of girls or the next set of kids going through school that don’t feel like they have a person, that’s why I exist, I think.’

Crisis In The Classroom airs on Virgin Media One and Virgin Media PLAY on Monday, September 28, at 9pm

President Donald Trump made an unusual business proposal to Chinese President Xi Jinping during Xi’s visit to the White House last week: the possibility of buying American military equipment.

US Ambassador to China David Perdue disclosed the exchange during a television interview on Sunday.

“President Trump continues to say, ‘Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world.’ He actually asked President Xi… would he like to buy some at one point,” Perdue said on Fox News, though he did not provide details about Xi’s response.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office today, Trump said Perdue had confused China with Taiwan during the interview.

“To China? You mean to Taiwan? I never heard of that…. No, they probably like to buy it because we do make better equipment than that. Maybe it’s a good idea. But we didn’t discuss.”

A State Department official told the Daily Mail that current law “prohibits arms sales to China.”

Another US official said there were no plans to sell weapons to China, despite the ambassador’s striking account.

During the interview, Perdue was also questioned about concerns surrounding military aid and weapons sales to Taiwan that have been delayed.

The US ambassador said Trump had approved $11 billion in arms sales to Taiwan last year, while discussions continued over other potential purchases.

“He and President Xi talk about that every time they get together,” Perdue told the Fox News host, adding that Trump had emphasized the US sells arms to countries around the world.

The prospect of the White House offering advanced American weapons to Beijing would represent a dramatic departure from modern US foreign policy.

For decades, Washington’s foreign-policy establishment has regarded Communist-ruled China as the United States’ foremost challenger and the only global power capable of matching its economic strength, diplomatic influence and military reach.

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China has the world’s fastest-growing military, leading administrations from both parties to warn for years about the potentially devastating consequences of a confrontation between the two nuclear-armed powers.

A central concern is Taiwan’s fiercely disputed sovereignty, particularly as Beijing carries out aggressive territorial maneuvers in the South and East China Seas, areas vital to key US allies.

Trump’s unexpected sales pitch comes amid long-standing tensions, with US officials accusing Chinese state-backed defense companies of supporting America’s principal adversaries around the world.

Beijing has authorized Chinese companies to provide Iran and Russia with critical dual-use technology and advanced satellite imagery, as well as pursuing covert efforts to export lethal weapons.

Those activities have already prompted a series of US sanctions against multiple Chinese companies.

As America’s historic military dominance in the Asia-Pacific wanes, accelerated by resources being diverted to the war against Iran, the US defense sector is simultaneously buckling under production shortfalls.

The New York Times reports that the White House is currently sitting on a stalled $14 billion arms package for Taiwan.

Though State Department officials crafted the package and congressional leaders signed off on it earlier this year, the crucial shipment has stalled indefinitely within the department.

Senators from both sides of the aisle sent a letter to Trump in May of this year, pleading with him to consider restarting the sales.

Adding fuel to the fire, President Trump candidly admitted during a May Fox News interview in Beijing that he was deliberately freezing the Taiwan shipments to keep them in reserve as a high-value ‘negotiating chip’ with Xi Jinping.

With talks back on the calendar, Trump revealed last week that he will sit down with Xi in China during a November regional summit, ahead of a reciprocal visit by the Chinese President to the US in December.

The Daily Mail reached out to the White House for comment.

Britain’s opposition is calling for Australian academic and author Randa Abdel-Fattah to be denied entry to the country over her outspoken pro-Palestinian views.

Chris Philp, the UK’s Shadow Home Secretary, wrote to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood on Sunday urging her to bar Abdel-Fattah from entering Britain.

Abdel-Fattah was scheduled to appear at six events in Ireland and the UK between September 30 and October 9 to promote her novel Discipline. No event was planned for October 7.

Philp cited the Australian writer’s longstanding criticism of Israel as grounds for refusing her entry.

Abdel-Fattah, who is of Palestinian and Egyptian heritage, has previously described Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel as “a moment of freedom.”

“Abdel-Fattah’s tour falls around the anniversary of the October 7 atrocities, as British Jewish communities continue to face acute security concerns,” Philp wrote in a letter seen by The Telegraph.

“Entry to this country is not an unconditional right for foreign nationals. Where an overseas visitor’s conduct, character or associations raise serious concerns about extremist rhetoric or activity, the government must be prepared to use its powers to block them.

“I therefore urge you to review Abdel-Fattah’s case as a matter of urgency and, if the relevant legal threshold is met, refuse or cancel any Electronic Travel Authorisation, entry clearance or other permission required for her to enter the United Kingdom.”

Discipline, Abdel-Fattah’s Miles Franklin-shortlisted novel, examines systematic censorship and the Palestine-Israel conflict.

The book attracted widespread attention after Abdel-Fattah was controversially removed from the 2026 Adelaide Writers Week. Some 180 authors boycotted the festival in protest, leading to the collapse of the event.

Although Discipline was published in Australia in 2025, Abdel-Fattah’s UK tour is timed to coincide with its release there.

Her itinerary included appearances in Dublin, London, Bath and Manchester.

Philp argued on Sunday that the academic’s visit could fuel antisemitism because of her past comments about the October 7 attacks.

“These are not trivial or isolated remarks. Taken together, they raise serious questions about whether allowing (Dr) Abdel-Fattah to enter Britain and undertake a high-profile speaking tour is compatible with the public good,” Philp wrote.

“Britain should be unequivocal in confronting extremism, whatever its source.

“The government cannot say that it is determined to confront extremism while failing to scrutinise overseas speakers whose rhetoric appears to celebrate or excuse the events of October 7, or declining to identify a proscribed terrorist organisation as such.”

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A UK Home Office spokesperson said the department does not comment on individual cases, but confirmed that it stands against antisemitism.

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief Peter Wertheim told The Australian his organisation hadn’t heard about Dr Abdel-Fattah’s UK tour but understood why it was facing scrutiny.

‘We can well understand the concerns that have been raised about her visit, especially as it will coincide with the commemorations of the anniversary of the October 7 terrorist attacks,’ Mr Wertheim said.  

Jeremy Leibler, president of the Zionist Federation of Australia, said the ZFA would support the UK in its right to ‘deny a visa to someone seeking to enter for the purpose of spreading hatred’.

‘At a time when Britain is confronting an elevated terrorism threat, repeated attacks and threats against its Jewish community and serious challenges to social cohesion, it is entitled to consider that record when deciding whether to grant someone the privilege of entry,’ Mr Leibler said.

‘The United Kingdom does not need imported extremism given another platform to promote hatred against Jewish communities.’

Dr Abdel-Fattah’s events and guest appearances have repeatedly faced criticism from Jewish-Australian organisations.

Her discussion event about Discipline was initially pulled from Adelaide Writers’ Week earlier this year due to ‘cultural sensitivity’ following the terrorist attack at a Jewish event at Bondi Beach in December 2025.

Organisers attempted to re-invite Dr Abdel-Fattah to the event after the initial snub triggered a mass boycott from authors, but then the Writers’ Week was cancelled altogether.

Her prior appearances at Bendigo Writers Festival last year and Newcastle Writers’ Festival in March were both criticised by Jewish groups.

Dr Abdel-Fattah claimed she’d been singled out by another writers’ event three weeks ago.

She’d been set to host book talks at the Cambridge Literary Festival, in November, but her appearance was cancelled when the venue, Newnham College, became unavailable.

The Australian author claimed the true reason behind the cancellation was because the Jewish Chronicle, a Jewish newspaper in London, had approached the festival about her forum.

‘I hope the festival will choose principle over posturing and follow through with my session at an alternative venue,’ Dr Abdel-Fattah wrote online.

‘There has never been a more important time for arts institutions to push back against these targeted campaigns that aim to silence our voices from public life.’

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A 41-year-old father of two has died after being struck by a cyclist while walking through New York City’s Central Park on his way to work.

Rich O’Brien was hit at approximately 6:36 a.m. Wednesday near West 84th Street. He fell to the ground and died four days later from injuries sustained in the collision.

The New York City Police Department said O’Brien was struck by a 32-year-old man riding a pedal bike, People reported.

O’Brien, who had two daughters, aged eight and 12, suffered severe head trauma in the crash. The cyclist was thrown from his bicycle and sustained minor injuries.

Emergency responders took O’Brien to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition.

He died peacefully in the early hours of Sunday with his wife beside him, according to a GoFundMe campaign created for the grieving family.

‘Although our hearts are broken by this unimaginable loss, Richie’s legacy will live on. He was able to give the gift of life to others through organ donation, helping those in need even in his final moments,’ the fundraiser said.

The fundraiser described O’Brien as a loving husband and father who suffered a devastating brain injury while making his daily journey to work to support his family and provide his wife, Ronni, and daughters Kylie and Mia with the life they deserved.

‘Richie is a proud Local 638 Steamfitter,’ the fundraiser noted.

Laura Sackler, who witnessed the crash, told NYC Streets Blog that the cyclist initially appeared shocked and confused before seeming to realize the seriousness of what had happened.

‘He was clearly emotionally devastated and at one point near tears,’ she said.

Sackler said O’Brien was knocked unconscious, suffered significant blood loss and never regained consciousness. She also said medical help took “an incredibly long time” to arrive.

Jenicia O’Brien, his sister-in-law, said the family was heartbroken by the sudden and unexpected death of her beloved brother-in-law.

She said O’Brien was deeply loved and cherished, adding that he would always hold a special place in the hearts of those who knew him.

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Ken O’Brien, a close relative, shared the family’s anguish in a message posted Monday: ‘Please someone wake me up from this nightmare.’

Felicia Hettrich, a longtime friend, wrote on Facebook that O’Brien was “the best person I have ever known.”

‘I’ve known Rich since I was seven… The best father, husband and friend anyone could ever ask for. Rich and Ronni showed us all what true love is. His love for his daughters has set the bar for what a father should be,’ she said.

‘He taught us as friends that you show up, as he always has, and that you always finish your beer. Now it’s our turn to show up for him and his family.’

Another friend of over 30 years said he considered O’Brien as ‘a brother.’ 

‘There isn’t a better human being on this planet,’ Matt Hettrich wrote.

‘He’d drop what he was doing instantly if anyone needed help. I strive to be even half the husband, father, and friend that he is.’

Andrew Kozlowsky, another friend, said: ‘Words can not describe the devastation of this tragic accident.’

‘Rich is one of the best people I have ever had the privilege of knowing. He is selfless, kind, funny, an amazing father, husband and to me a lifelong friend,’ he continued.

‘I have known and been friends with Rich for over 30 years and the stories and memories are countless. Rich was that one friend you could always rely on… I will forever miss you Rich.’

Ronni O’Brien had shared countless photos of their young family travelling across the world, and many of O’Brien lovingly posing with his daughters. 

A funeral is set to be held on Friday in Port Jefferson Station. 

The Daily Mail reached out to the New York City Police Department for comment.  

A high-profile Sydney separation has reportedly become increasingly tense, with PR executive Montarna McDonald said to be “furious” after her former husband, Nick Pitt, took his new partner on a family holiday with the couple’s two young daughters.

Montarna is currently holidaying in Indonesia with her friend Kristina Macourt, but is reportedly unhappy after insurance lawyer Nick was photographed enjoying a tropical break in Port Douglas with Ashleigh McDonald last week.

The Daily Mail first revealed Nick and Ashleigh’s relationship in May. Nick and Montarna separated around two years ago following six years of marriage and a decade together.

Nick, who works as a personal injury lawyer at Wotton Kearney, posted a joint Instagram update with Ashleigh featuring moments from their Port Douglas getaway.

One image showed Nick kissing Ashleigh on the cheek at the resort’s restaurant, while another captured him spending time with his daughters in the swimming pool.

There is no suggestion Nick acted improperly by including his girlfriend in the holiday. However, sources claim Montarna—who was reportedly “blindsided” by reports of her ex-husband’s new romance—was unhappy to see Ashleigh becoming part of the family holiday.

The Mail has also learned that a screenshot from a now-expired Instagram post began circulating after it appeared to show Ashleigh wearing a ring on her wedding finger.

The image quickly fuelled speculation among those who have followed the couple’s separation since Montarna held a lavish “divorce party” at Mimi’s in late 2024, attended by a host of prominent Sydney identities. Some began wondering whether Nick had proposed during the Port Douglas trip.

The speculation proved unfounded: the supposed ring was not an engagement ring, but merely the result of an optical illusion in the image.

Away from the speculation, Montarna has been documenting her luxury Indonesian escape online, sharing photos of herself in designer clothing and riding horses along the beach.

Her daughters have reportedly finished their time away with their father and are expected to meet her in Indonesia on Monday. A day earlier, Montarna posted a photograph captioned: “Last peaceful morning before the chaos (my children) arrive.”

The latest developments could add further strain to the relationship between Montarna and Nick, whose separation has become one of Sydney’s most closely watched celebrity break-ups.

The pair ended their marriage in 2024, with their split becoming public after Montarna celebrated her single status at an elaborate divorce party at Merivale’s Mimi’s in Coogee.

A centrepiece of the evening was a custom cake bearing her maiden name, McDonald, signalling that she had stopped using her married surname, Pitt.

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Guests included several well-known Sydney social figures, including Caroline Tran, Lou O’Neill and Pilates identity Bernadette Sukkar.

Behind the scenes, however, Montarna and Nick were reportedly making efforts at this time to salvage their relationship. This included attending couples’ counselling in a last-ditch attempt to repair their marriage before ultimately deciding to separate.

They have since focused on co-parenting their two daughters.

Nick’s relationship with entrepreneur Ashleigh first drew attention in May 2026, when the couple made their public debut. At the time, there was some chatter about the fact Ashleigh coincidentally shares a last name with Nick’s former wife.

Ashleigh, the founder and CEO of exclusive membership group 42 Private, is well-known in high-society circles and is said to be a regular at the Royal Hospital for Women Foundation’s annual ladies’ luncheon.

Tellingly, she was absent for this year’s event, while Montarna, who is the founder of successful PR firm The Audience Agency, did attend.

Nick and Ashleigh had reportedly been dating for just eight weeks when they were first seen together.

While her new relationship has made her a talking point of late, Ashleigh has long been a fixture of the social scene, having previously been linked to sailor Seve Jarvin.

She also has a unique place in the complex, interconnected world of Sydney’s east.

Ashleigh is the younger sister of Amber Symond (née McDonald), who was the stepmother of one of Montarna’s closest friends, Deborah Symond O’Neil, when Amber was married to Deb’s father, ‘Aussie John’ Symond, from 2016 to 2023. 

Following that separation, Amber reverted to the surname of her ex-husband, Patrick Keating, the father of her two children and son of former prime minister Paul Keating.