Ms Jean Mullan:

The subject of respite has been raised by a number of parents. It is a no-brainer. Parents such as me are getting older but are offering 24-7 care, 365 days a year. It is endless and, obviously, respite is essential. If someone is lucky enough to have a large extended family nearby, perhaps he or she can ask for their help, although in many ways that is less than ideal. Many people are just on their own. It is particularly acute for lone parents. I am fortunate I have my husband to back me up but for lone parents, there is no break at all. I am again thinking of the family and widow I know. Any time she has to bring her autistic son to an appointment, she has to bring her older son along, which means he misses a day of school. It is a long journey for her and it is exhausting.

Part of the answer could be to have people who are available. She has applied for this, but people do not even know how long the waiting lists are because they are not told. They just apply and wait and nothing happens. The ideal solution would be if somebody could go to her home and, perhaps, look after one child while she is gone. Alternatively, a solution might be to have a kind of drop-in centre where trained people could look after people with disabilities on a short-term basis. In the longer term, it becomes about weekends, holidays and so on. Some resources are available but, personally, I have never been able to avail of them, so I do not quite know how they work.

On the point about navigating services, it would be very helpful to have a directory of services. It takes an awful lot of time even just to find out whom to contact. Some directories relating to services for children have been made in our area, but there should also be a directory of services across the board for all ages. It can be really difficult even to find out whom to contact to access a service. That might be considered.

I have addressed the transport issue, which is very significant. The other day I read that in Greece, there are mobile mental health units. Post pandemic, there has been a huge surge in the need for mental health services. Again, it is difficult for people to travel to services, so why not have a mobile unit? That is another out-of-the-box suggestion that might resolve part of the issue.