Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The mighty Corrib unites them. I am fascinated that they have developed a model where all of the stakeholders are willing partners and they have been able to find accommodation and to have the wraparound supports. How could I get this service going in Cork, for instance, which is where I am from? I could see some challenges in breaking down the silos between all of the constituent partners that would be needed to come together on this. Although not insurmountable, these are challenges nonetheless. Have the Simon Community carried out research, either academic or their own, around the results and the follow-ons of individuals coming through the system? How they are getting on now, because I would love to see this model replicated? If I, as a public representative, could guide somebody into such a service, that would be meaningful for me instead of having to go through the usual frustrations that we experience as Deputies trying to advocate for our own people.

I would love to take their model. I would love to engage in the research that they have carried out, if any, and bring it to Cork, for instance, and say that here is a model and it works. It would force people to shake off their own preconceptions about young people who are presenting to them because often their experience is not a good one. Ms Feeney crystallised it for me perfectly in terms of the snakes and ladders. When somebody is vulnerable, it is easy for me to talk as I have the capacity to advocate for myself. Not everybody else does and they need those support. What is their perspective on how we could replicate this model and get the political buy-in for that? I would welcome their views on that. It is a big question and I am sorry for that.