Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

While it is not an area for which the Department in which I am Minister of State is responsible, I have something of an in-depth knowledge of the matter because I have a cousin in another branch who is looked after very well.

As I stated, the HSE has committed to continue to fund Down Syndrome Ireland's Louth-Meath branch for 2018 based on the previous year's allocation pending the completion of the review. Thirteen and a half thousand euro was dedicated to the early intervention home teacher programme 2016 and 2017 and this amount will continue to be allocated to the branch for this programme in 2018.

The HSE is currently engaged in a major reconfiguration of its existing therapy resources for children with disability into multidisciplinary geographically based teams as part of its national programme on progressing disability services for children and young people aged zero to 18 years. The key objective of this programme is to bring about equity of access to disability services and consistency of service delivery with a clear pathway for children with disabilities and their families to services regardless of where they live, what school they go to or the nature of the individual's difficulties. Evidence to date from the areas where this has been rolled out shows that the implementation of this programme continues to have a positive impact on the waiting lists, both for assessments and therapies.

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