Revealed: Teacher who was caught on CCTV assaulting autistic kids in Dublin school
Tanya Shortt at the door of her home with our reporter Alan
Tanya Shortt at the door of her home with our reporter Alan
This is the former teacher who has avoided jail after being convicted of assaulting autistic children 'unable to speak for themselves' while they were under her care.
Tanya Shortt (36), from Esmondale, Kilcullen Road, Naas, Co Kildare, was given two two-month suspended sentences at Blanchardstown District Court last month after pleading guilty to assaulting two children at Play and Language Support (Pals) preschool for autistic children in Finglas, north Dublin in January 2023.
Parents broke down in tears speaking about the incidents to the Sunday World this week, saying Shortt has destroyed their trust in people and that they 'want everyone to know what she did'.
One parent said she was devastated when she was shown CCTV of Shortt assaulting her son, including grabbing him aggressively by the arm and dragging him through a door, pinching him and putting her hand over his nose and mouth.
She tearfully explained how in the weeks before the incident her five-year-old autistic son, who she said was barely able to speak at that time, cried hysterically when she brought him to the preschool.
'I blame myself that I didn't see what was going on,' she said, and added that watching the CCTV broke her heart.
'To see that face, that little face and to see how scared he was when she pulled him, my God. I am going to blame myself for the rest of my life.'
While the children cannot be named because of their ages, the court ruled that Shortt can be identified following her conviction.
Tanya Shortt at the door of her home with our reporter Alan
News in 90 Seconds - May 14th
Shortt declined to comment when the Sunday World approached her this week, simply saying 'no' before closing the door.
The preschool said in a statement that they were 'heartbroken that we were unable to prevent this from occurring'.
The statement said an investigation into Shortt's actions was launched in January 2023, immediately after other staff raised concerns about her rough treatment of children, and she was suspended immediately.
They then reviewed CCTV which showed Shortt assaulting children, and made complaints to gardai, Tusla and the Teaching Council of Ireland, and informed parents.
Parents told the Sunday World they fear Shortt carried out more assaults but this could not be proven as the CCTV available only covered a short period of time in January 2023.
The parents said she had been working there for over a year and said they became concerned that their children's behaviour had changed in the months prior to January 2023 under Shortt's care.
Another mother who was shown footage of her daughter being roughly shoved down on a chair which didn't lead to any charges, said: 'The CCTV only covered a week or two in January and there are areas that weren't covered by cameras. We're tortured. What did she do where there was no cameras?'
Management at the preschool contacted parents in early January 2023 after the other staff raised concerns.
Video footage was reviewed but only covered a short period of time as older CCTV recordings are automatically overwritten.
The preschool called in parents of six children, aged from three upwards, in Shortt's care and showed them CCTV footage of her with their children.
She pleaded guilty to assaulting two of the children. Parents were told by the preschool that while she was caught on camera appearing to carry out another assault, that charge was dismissed as the timestamp on that footage was off by an hour as it hadn't been updated for daylight savings time.
The mother of one young boy who Shortt admitted assaulting said she felt something was wrong with him in the months before the incident caught on CCTV.
Tanya Shortt at the door of her home with our reporter Alan
'Those kids at the time were barely speaking. My son was very late with the speaking and at that time was barely able to say anything,' she said.
She said towards the end of 2022 her son became upset every time he was due to go to school.
'He was actually crying. I went with him to the preschool and he lay down in front of the door. He was crying and begging without saying anything.
'I was just shocked it was happening and lay down with him in front of everyone. I was thinking he doesn't want to go to school. I blame myself that I didn't see what was going on.'
The mother broke down as she told of her devastation when she was brought in to view CCTV footage in January 2023.
'On camera, what they showed me, three things in my son's case.
'One was… sorry, I can't handle this, I'm blaming myself for not seeing what was going on.
'One thing was showing she was pulling my son. He was playing hide and seek. She grabbed his hand and pulled him very aggressively behind the door.
"I saw his face on the video. He was so scared, you could see he was going to start crying but I don't know what happened on the other side of the door because there was no camera.
'Another one she was pinching him. She was grabbing his hand and pinching him. I could tell from watching it that it was painful.
'Another thing they showed me was her putting her hand over his mouth and nose so he couldn't breathe. They didn't count that as assault, as far as I know.'
She said the look on his face after Shortt pulled him through the door haunted her.
'To see that face, that little face and to see how scared he was when she pulled him, my God. I am going to blame myself for the rest of my life. It was very aggressive. So big a woman and such small kids.'
She said Shortt shattered her trust in people.
'I will never get back trust in people. When he goes to school now my heart just stops. I know the school is lovely and the teacher is lovely but I never have 100 per cent trust in anybody anymore'
Shortt wrote a letter to the parents of the assaulted children ahead of sentencing, saying she wanted to extend a 'sincere and formal apology for any actions, behaviours or decision during my time working with your children that caused concern, discomfort or a loss of trust'.
She said she recognised the weight of responsibility that comes with working with young people and regrets 'any way in which I failed to uphold that responsibility'.
'I acknowledge that in certain respects my conduct did not align with the standards expected of someone entrusted with such a role,' she wrote.
She went on to say she took responsibility for her 'shortcomings' and 'the consequences they may have had on your families'.
Short further admitted her 'actions may have led to disappointment or concern'.
'Following a period of serious reflection I have made the decision to permanently step away from any current or future work involving children.'
She added she saw this as the most 'respectful and responsible course of action'.
In reality, there is no way Shortt would pass garda vetting to work with children ever again following her recent conviction.
Parents blasted her apology, with one mother saying it sounded like something written by AI and did not address the fact she assaulted children.
'It wasn't really apologetic. It was 'sorry you're upset'. She didn't say I'm sorry for being so bad to the kids, it was more that was just my way of teaching them and sorry if that may have made you uncomfortable.
'I hope she feels ashamed and I hope she knows that what she did was wrong, I hope [but don't know]. The result [sentence] is never going to be enough for us.
'I don't know what it would have to be to make me feel satisfied, there's probably nothing that would.'
Another mother said she was shown footage of her daughter, who was three at the time, being pushed down into a chair by Shortt but was told it wasn't enough for an assault charge.
She said she also noticed a change in her daughter's behaviour after she was in the teacher's care and said she will always question if anything else happened to her daughter.
'This had such a devastating effect on every parent. If she ran over me with her car I would have healed faster. It has just been constant emotional pain for the past two years wondering did she hurt her that day and did anything else happen. I had a nervous breakdown over it and her apology is a joke,' she said.
Pals preschool programme director Heidi Penrose said they were deeply committed to the welfare of the children and families.
'Two years ago, a group of dedicated staff brought the questionable actions of one employee to the attention of management. Following a thorough internal investigation, it was found that these actions were in direct opposition to our ethos and standards,' she said.
Ms Penrose said Pals contacted gardai, Tusla and the Teaching Council and provided detailed documentation and CCTV.
'In the spirit of full transparency, every family who had a child attending the school at that time was informed of the allegations and our efforts to bring this individual to justice. We were and continue to be heartbroken that we were unable to prevent this from occurring. However, we continue to be committed to protecting all children, especially those who are unable to speak for themselves.'
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