Mr. Kevin O'Brien:

Variety - the Children’s Charity of Ireland is an all-Ireland children’s charity established in Ireland in 1951. Our charity specialises in providing research-driven mobility and well-being programmes for children and young adults from across the disability spectrum.

Mobility and well-being are essential for people with disabilities to live fulfilling, independent lives. Access to mobility aids, inclusive transportation and accessible environments empowers individuals to participate fully in education, employment and social activities. Enhancing mobility reduces isolation, promotes mental and physical health and fosters dignity and self-confidence. Well-being encompasses more than physical health. There are also emotional, social and psychological aspects involved. Supporting mobility and well-being through inclusive policies, community support and innovation creates equal opportunities for all. A society that prioritises accessibility ensures that people with disabilities can thrive, contribute meaningfully and enjoy the same rights and freedoms as others.

One of the programmes we operate at Variety Ireland is our recycle mobility programme. This is an initiative set up by Variety Ireland in the summer of 2021 with the support of the then Minister of State, Anne Rabbitte, the Department of Children, Disability and Equality, the HSE and the then Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan. The programme provides financial assistance for specially adapted mobility trikes to children with disabilities who cannot use conventional bicycles. In addition, there is an upcycling element that makes the programme fully sustainable because nothing goes to waste. Once a child has outgrown his or her adapted trike, the item is returned, refurbished or adapted and passed on to a school in order that even more people with mobility issues can enjoy equal access to cycling. It is important to recognise and thank the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality and the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, the Minister for Transport and the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, and the HSE for their continued support for such a vital programme that changes the lives of people with mobility issues and their families. The recycle mobility programme supports inclusion and equal access to cycling for people with mobility issues. A report conducted by the Royal College of Surgeons in 2024 Ireland shows that our programme improved the mental and physical well-being of both the child or young adult and other family members by up to 87.5%. The programme brings families together for outdoor cycling activities.

In 2024, with the support of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Variety Ireland launched our first our all-island disability cycling partnership. This initiative brought children from 12 special schools from both the North of Ireland and southern Ireland together in the peace park in Omagh where bikes were presented to each school. This allows students from each school to visit each other for cross-Border cycling activities. Not only do their special mobility trikes support inclusion and equal access to cycling for children with disabilities, which is good for their physical and mental well-being, they also create a new network for these groups to interact and develop long-term relationships as well as promoting peace, reconciliation, healing and understanding for children with disabilities in areas that have experienced division.

In November, we will be launching Ireland’s first inclusion cycling centre of excellence in conjunction with Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board, South Dublin County Council, the HSE and the Departments of Transport and Children, Disability and Equality. This will support joint cycling and learning for both children and young adults with mobility issues. This centre, which is situated at Collinstown Park Sports Complex in Clondalkin, Dublin 22, will allow children and young adults with and without disabilities to learn and participate in safe cycling together. This supports inclusion and equal access to cycling. The charity is already planning a roll-out of this across other venues across Ireland in 2026 and 2027.

Earlier this month, Variety partnered with Dublin GAA to roll out our very first All Stars Féile, which took place in Whitehall Colmcille GAA Club in north Dublin. As part of this event, we brought together children and young members with additional needs from 30 GAA clubs in Dublin for an afternoon of fun, sport and inclusion. This ensured that people from across the disability spectrum could be included in a range of activities and that no one was excluded. This is something Variety Ireland hopes to roll out with GAA clubs across the rest of Ireland in 2026.

The Variety bee kind programme is a community-led initiative launched in January 2025 in Castlebar, County Mayo, under which over 60 community groups joined forces to plant 100 heritage apple trees in total. The project pivots around four guiding principles, namely "Bee kind to yourself", "Bee kind to others", "Bee kind to your community" and "Bee kind to nature". It engages groups across ages and abilities - including disability organisations, sports clubs, schools and cultural groups - bringing people together to embed social inclusion, connection and well-being through hands-on environmental action. Beyond the social dimension, the orchards provide food for wildlife and pollinators, create lasting community assets in the form of trees for local residents and inspire ongoing stewardship of nature. Our first cross-Border bee kind initiative will take place next month and will see community groups from Louth, County Down and County Armagh plant native Irish fruit trees.

Variety holds triple lock charity status. It is one of the few registered charities in Ireland to operate under the supervision of a non-paid CEO or board members, who dedicate their time to the charity for free and without expense. This ensures that we maximise all funding to create programmes that support, inclusion, equal access, family, community and well-being for people across the disability spectrum . We at Variety Ireland have a saying, "It's not that people with additional needs are entitled to equality, it's that they actually deserve it." I thank the Cathaoirleach and members for allowing us to explain what we do.