Dr. Noreen O'Leary:

There is a long-term cost to that as well. The Deputy mentioned early intervention and how we know that it improves the outcomes for the child in terms of his or her functioning and ability to access education and to go on to independent employment. Obviously, there is a cost issue for the State as it reduces supports needed. We also need to look at the wider families and the impact on parents and other siblings of children who do not receive services because there is a wider cost in this regard that sometimes is not counted as much. We need to look at all of those things in terms of the long-term outcomes. Early intervention is absolutely key. In previous models and currently in some areas, potentially, there were successful early intervention models in which families were able to access timely interventions. Their children were supported to access preschool and families were upskilled to support children and the environment. They could then make a successful transition to primary school where their support needs may actually reduce because their capacity and skills had been built in those early years.

Sometimes the risk is that we prioritise early intervention over those children who are now older and, potentially, in recent years have maybe missed that window of early intervention.