Finian McGrath (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputies John Brassil and Michael Healy-Rae, who have a particular interest in this issue. I have already spoken to Deputy Michael Healy-Rae about this and I recognise that both Deputies are prioritising people with disabilities in their constituency.

I will now go into some detail on the matter and answer the questions posed by the Deputies. In June 2011, a report entitled Time to Move on from Congregated Settings was published by the HSE. That report identified that in 2008 approximately 4,000 individuals with disabilities lived in congregated type settings. These are places where ten or more people reside in a single living unit or are campus based. The report 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.

Currently, 2,725 people live in congregated settings and our objective is to reduce this figure by one third by 2021 and ultimately to eliminate all congregated settings. At a national level, work has been ongoing to support the implementation of this policy. I am pleased to note that a significant amount of progress has been made to date, including the establishment of a multi-stakeholder working group chaired by Inclusion Ireland. A toolkit for transitional plans has been developed to support service providers in the development of project transition plans for individuals moving to more socially inclusive settings. Project action plans for priority sites have been developed to guide and support these sites to develop their action plans for transitioning individuals from congregated settings. A communication framework has been developed and disseminated which includes a key messages document and a stakeholder mapping tool to support providers to engage all stakeholders in a targeted manner and ensure communications are timely and appropriate. However, from what I have heard today, that has not happened. All of these communication documents, action plan templates, toolkits and an information bulletin can be viewed on the HSE's website. I would encourage the Deputies to review these documents as they give a comprehensive overview of the level of preparation that goes into moving people out of congregated settings.

The St. John of God service in Kerry has been identified as one of the priority sites for decongregation. The HSE is committed to working with St. John of God Services to transition 17 residents who are in ward style accommodation from their current unsuitable accommodation on campus to more appropriate settings in the local community. The comprehensive transition plans I have described will ensure that there is extensive engagement with the people themselves, their families, carers and advocates, as well as the service provider, to ensure successful and sustainable transitions into the community.

In total, 78 people currently residing on the Beaufort campus will ultimately be supported over a number of years to move to more suitable accommodation in the community, depending on available funding and the ability to source suitable houses in the community. HSE representatives met public representatives from Kerry yesterday and were clear in stating that St. Mary of the Angels will close over time. I believe that was said at the meeting. I would particularly like to assure any concerned residents, family members and my colleagues in the House that the process of moving a person with disabilities out of a congregated setting is not something that happens overnight. The process of moving people to more suitable accommodation in the community will take place over a number of years and will be done in full consultation with all residents, advocates and their families.

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