Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I feel that this is a never-ending saga. The Deputy asked me to reference Cork. I think it all focuses on Cork but I will stay on point for a moment on this. The frustrations of families of children with additional needs who attend special schools is acknowledged, as is the urgent need for therapy provision within special schools. The Deputy asked whether the HSE wants this to succeed. The answer is "Yes". I met with Bernard Gloster in the past three to four weeks to discuss this and he told me he has given a clear direction to all the regional executive officers in the country. In particular, he has given very clear direction to the regional executive officers in the areas where the special schools have been selected to co-operate. This is a partnership approach. Sometimes we get given out to in Government for not having a collective piece. This is the collective of the Department, the Department of Education, the HSE and the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, working together to put children at the centre. Bernard Gloster is very clear and has given the direction for that co-operation and leadership for it to succeed.

On 9 August, I welcomed the Government decision to support a special schools pilot that would provide delivery of in-school therapy supports to children in selected special schools. The programme will be provided by the HSE's CDNTs in 16 special schools, four of which are in Cork. The others will be chosen. The Department of Education identified and suggested schools for inclusion in phase one of the pilot based on educational need and detailed engagement undertaken by the Department over recent years.

The Deputy referenced an email from last February. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then when Bernard O'Regan issued that email. At that point, we did not have a special Cabinet subcommittee headed up by the Taoiseach where all Departments are around the table. I go back to the fact that it was agreed at Cabinet that the pilot programme would be addressed. From February to June 2024, Bernard O'Regan was talking about it. We spoke about the Wexford model about whether private capacity could be capitalised upon. He gave direct instruction to his heads of disability to go and capture capacity if it is there to support families and ensure that children got the services and supports they required. To be fair, in some CHOs, we saw positive interventions while things were not so good in others. One has to ask about what is wrong in Cork and why is it working elsewhere. Maybe it is the fact that the HSE does not have a CDNT on the ground. Maybe it is too far removed from the delivery of services. Maybe it is because it is easier to blame everybody else than to be actively involved in finding a solution. I am frustrated to hear the Deputy say there has been a lack of engagement, uptake and delivery of services to the four schools that have been clearly identified and are queuing up for this. To think that we are not delivering is highly frustrating. I will ensure that this step change is a positive one where the NCSE, the HSE and the two Departments are working collaboratively. Whoever is deciding not to co-operate will be found out.

See this speech in context