Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I understand the Deputy's question specifically relates to the reconfiguration of residential services as recommended in the HSE's report, Time to Move from Congregated Settings - A Strategy for Community Inclusion. I will come back to the Deputy's supplementary oral question presently. The aforementioned report proposes a new model of support in the community by moving people from institutional settings to the community over a seven year time frame.

The report identified that around 4,000 people with disabilities in Ireland live in congregated settings, defined as residential settings where people live with ten or more others. It found that notwithstanding the commitment and initiative of dedicated staff and management, there were a significant number of people still experiencing institutional living conditions where they lacked basic privacy and dignity and lived their lives apart from any community and family.

I would like to acknowledge the work and progress made by the HSE and disability service providers in transitioning people from congregated settings since 2008. At the end of 2014 there were approximately 2,900 people with a disability living in institutional care and many of the original group of 4,000 surveyed had transitioned to alternative community living arrangements. I am anxious to ensure that this momentum is maintained. The reconfiguration of disability residential services has been prioritised by the HSE social care directorate in its operational plan for 2015, with an additional 150 people targeted to move this year. The HSE is currently developing an implementation plan for de-institutionalisation that will be rolled out at a regional and local level in full consultation with the stakeholders.

I am anxious to answer the Deputy's supplementary question. The 30 families to whom the Deputy referred need have no fears. As long as I have been in politics there was a crisis-driven approach, with people with disabilities coming out of training or school having nowhere to go in September. We did not have such a situation last year and will not have it this year either. People will have to outline to the HSE directorate the particular needs of the individuals in question and a place will be found for them. We do not want a crisis-driven approach to re-emerge. I assure the Deputy that it will not happen this year and the €12 million that we have set aside will ensure that it does not. A lot of planning is going into ensuring that people do not have the type of anxiety the Deputy has described.

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