Results 41-60 of 9,640 for speaker:Hildegarde Naughton

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (23 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: Government is committed to ensuring that disabled people are supported to live full lives of their own choosing, on an equitable basis with all others in society. The accessibility of towns and villages is very important in ensuring that disabled people can participate and thrive within their own communities. It is also complex, encompassing the provision of safe, reliable and accessible...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (23 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: I thank the Deputy for this question in relation to the provision of changing places toilet facilities. I know from my engagement with disabled people that this is a critical issue when it comes to participation in social and cultural life. Changing Places toilets are an important instrument for accessibility, ensuring greater accessibility of sanitary facilities to disabled people in...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (23 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: Under Part 3 of the Disability Act 2005, all public bodies are required to ensure that its public buildings are, insofar as practicable, accessible to persons with disabilities. Equally, where a service is provided by a public body, that body is obliged to ensure that the provision of access to the service by persons with disabilities is integrated. The National Human Rights Strategy for...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (23 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: I thank the Deputy for their question regarding the Decision Support Service (DSS) and the Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPA) application system. EPAs are a vital advance planning tool that enable adults to plan ahead for a time when they may have diminished decision-making capacity, ensuring that a person’s wishes are known and respected. Ensuring that the EPA application process is...

National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030: Statements (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: I thank all Members for their contributions to this discussion. As Minister of State with responsibility for disabilities, I have witnessed at first hand the passion and commitment that disabled people bring to advocating for a more inclusive Ireland, and for continually highlighting the need to provide more and better services. The Government and I are very conscious of the struggles...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Staff (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: The Action Plan for Disability Services 2024 – 2026, which was based on the Disability Capacity Review to 2032: “A Review of Disability Social Care Demand and Capacity Requirements up to 2032” sets out a need for 222 adult multidisciplinary therapy (MDT) posts by 2026. The cost is estimated by the HSE to be in the region of €17m. It must be noted, however, that...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: Day Services are a key component of support services that enable people to live within the community. The New Directions Policy, which was published in 2013, outlines the manner in which adults with disabilities receive disability day services. This policy is underpinned by the values of person centredness, community inclusion, active citizenship and quality. This policy is in line with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Health Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: The HSE provides a range of assisted living services including personal assistance (PA) and home support services to support individuals to maximise their capacity to live full and independent lives. The Action Plan for Disability Services 2024-2026 commits to delivering 800,000 additional hours of PA and 110,000 additional hours of home support. The cost of delivering 800,000 additional...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: A personalised budget is an amount of funding allocated to an eligible person with a disability to enable them to make their own arrangements to meet specified support needs. A key strength of the personalised budget model is the enhanced autonomy and flexibility it offers. Individuals’ can select services that are most relevant and meaningful to them, defining the quality, scope, and...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Strategies (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1009 and 1010 together. In fulfilment of a key commitment in the Programme for Government, I am delighted to say the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 was launched and published on 3rd September. The design and development of the Strategy involved a wide-ranging national consultation process, extensive engagement with key...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Home Care Packages (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1031 and 1032 together. As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Strategies (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: The Government is committed to the full implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as ratified by Ireland in 2018. In fulfilment of commitments under Article 4(3) of the UNCRPD, the consultation and stakeholder engagement processes which informed and influenced the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 were both...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Home Help Service (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: As this matter is seeking advice on the establishment of a business in the first instance, it is not within my remit as Minister of State for Disability.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: HSE-funded day programmes for people with intellectual disabilities, autism, or complex physical disabilities include a range of centre-based and community-based activities. Access to services is based on an individual’s needs rather than on their diagnosis. The focus is on supporting people to participate in the mainstream activities and in the life of their community, in line with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: The HSE provides specialist disability services, including Day Services and Rehabilitative Training, to people with disabilities who require such services, and people with intellectual disabilities would form the majority of service users who are supported by these services. While day service funding does not include transport, some transport supports are provided by the HSE or funded...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Disability Services (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: HSE-funded day programmes for people with intellectual disabilities, autism, or complex physical disabilities include a range of centre-based and community-based activities. Access to services is based on an individual’s needs rather than on their diagnosis. The focus is on supporting people to participate in the mainstream activities and in the life of their community, in line with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Policies (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1106 and 1107 together. The National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 was published on 3rd September. The design and development of the Strategy was substantially influenced by a wide-ranging national consultation process, extensive engagement with disability stakeholders, and collaboration with government colleagues. The Strategy...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Departmental Policies (17 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: While eligibility criteria for different schemes and supports offered by the state can differ, in broad terms we do not define disability by way of reference to individualised impairments or medicalised diagnoses. The Disability Act 2005 interprets disability as meaning a “substantial restriction in the capacity of the person to carry on a profession, business or occupation in the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Disability and Equality: Care Services (8 Sep 2025)

Hildegarde Naughton: This Government is committed to the expansion of specialist services for people with disabilities and to support people with disabilities to live meaningful and fulfilling lives, with a person-centred approach across all services provided.  In Budget 2025, €27 million has been allocated for capital projects in disabilities services. This represents a €4 million increase...