Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I rise today to speak about two things. Community safety and police safety keep coming up and I want to talk about something positive that is happening in Tallaght west. As we look at measures that can advance communities in a positive way, it is also important to highlight projects and interventions that are working well and that we can empower, resource and become much more aware of.There is a new programme in west Tallaght that is in its very early stages. It began its detached street work in the past six to eight months. Street work and outreach work were used in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s when there were no resources and services in communities such as Tallaght. It was a way to work with people in their communities, at the shops or in the fields. It was usually with the most marginalised. Those who need the most help are usually the furthest away from it. Sometimes we need a special type of intervention. Sometimes this can involve some of the young men and women who are probably seen as problematic by other members of the community. They should be the people targeted by those working in youth work to bring them closer to the services. The new detached youth work street team in Killinarden, Glenshane and Jobstown is doing amazing work. I have watched them with some of the young men nobody has worked with for years. They are now running 10 km and holding their own football tournaments. These men were hanging around the shops, smoking, selling and doing all sorts. They are beginning to be engaged again with a very targeted intervention. It would be nice for us to look at some of these scenarios and see how we can enhance funding and the development of specific targeted work such as this.

It would be great if the Leader could write to the Minister for Health on my next issue. I was a key worker and worked in addiction services for a long time. I used to be able to make referrals for the people the service was supporting, for example, into Cuan Dara, which is a HSE-funded service. Some of the policies always had something written in that referrals would have to be done by an addiction counsellor. The understanding of most was that most communities cannot afford addiction counsellors and neither can the people themselves. Community services cannot afford to hire addiction counsellors. We have addiction practitioners who have been working for ten, 20 or 30 years in the field. Some of the HSE-funded residential treatment places are no longer taking referrals from those working in addiction services. They are enforcing a policy whereby it must be done by an addiction counsellor. This means far fewer people are seeking residential places. There are many projects in a precarious situation because they cannot support the next stage of recovery for those they are working with. The HSE or HSE-funded projects have decided to impose a rule that referrals must be made by an accredited addiction counsellor. There is just no access to accredited addiction counsellors. It feels like a policy that should not be used. We should be able to recognise the qualifications, history and knowledge of those working for addiction services. They are best placed to make these referrals themselves.