Tom Fleming (Kerry South, Independent)
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Question 183: To ask the Minister for Health the position regarding the plan Progressing Disability Services For Children and Young People. [23483/12]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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In 2010, the Health Service Executive ( HSE) established a project on progressing disability services for children and young people (0-18 years), supported by a National Coordinating Group, which includes representatives of the Department of Health and the Department of Education and Skills in addition to other key stakeholders. The project aims to address the following issues in relation to children's disability services:

· inequity of access to services due to inconsistent development of services;

· environmental change arising from the reorientation towards mainstream education leading to increasing demand for health services to support inclusion;

· increasing demand for services due to population growth and increased identification of children with disability;

· the need to re-align services with emerging primary care and integrated service structures.

The Group's implementation plan encompasses two elements:

· ongoing work in coordinating and reorganising early intervention services for children aged 0-5 years into integrated, geographically based teams;

· supporting the reorganisation of services for school-age children aged 5-18 years according to the same model.

The vision for the programme is:

· One clear pathway to services for all children with disabilities according to need;

· Resources used to the greatest benefit for all children and families;

· Health and education working together to support children to achieve their potential.

The programme is rolling out at national, regional and local levels. The structures will include parent representatives, representatives from service providers, education sector representatives and other stakeholders.

Sub-groups have been established to address various aspects of the work including:

· Mapping current health services available;

· The interface between education and health;

· Criteria for access to services;

· Training required for health staff;

· The composition of Early Intervention and School-Age Teams;

· Standards and performance reporting.