Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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1061. To ask the Minister for Health the services available to support persons with mental health issues to secure accommodation and employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37711/17]

Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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The Government, both through its commitment to the continued implementation of A Vision for Change and in line with the Programme for Government, supports access by mental health users to other health and personal social services, where their needs are consistent with their entitlements generally.

In relation to housing and tenancy supports, the Department of Health and the HSE participate in the implementation monitoring group for the Housing Strategy for People with disability, including people with mental health issues, which is addressing the needs of mental health service users in regard to accommodation, tenancy sustainment and related issues, including at sensitive points in their transition to care in the community.

€2 million was provided to address the mental health needs of homeless persons in the Dublin region in 2016, from additional funding secured for mental health in the 2016 HSE National Service Plan. The funding supports care and case management and intensive addiction and mental health in-reach programmes for homeless people in supported temporary accommodation and in long-term accommodation. The increased funding will also support long-term intensive care for homeless people with chronic and enduring health needs living in long-term supported accommodation that do not require acute hospital care, but have high support needs. The €2 million provided in 2016 will continue to be provided in 2017 onwards to fund these additional services for homeless people with mental health and addiction needs.

There is also a range of supports for people with mental health difficulties who wish to seek employment. These include the EmployAbility Service, which helps people with disabilities find work and offers them ongoing support, including job coaches throughout their employment, and the Community Services Programme, which aims to address disadvantage by supporting local community activity and providing local employment opportunities for certain groups of people, including people with disabilities.

In addition to this, a Genio-funded partnership project between the Department of Social Protection, the HSE and Mental Health Reform, entitled the 'Integrating Employment and Mental Health Support' (IEMHS) project has recently been completed. The project aimed to demonstrate how existing mental health and supported employment (Employability) services can fulfil the best practice Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model of supported employment through improved integration. This project went beyond current criteria for Employability services by allowing participating service users to avail of supported employment regardless of 'job readiness' and through integrating the Job Coach into the mental health team. The project ran for two years from 1 June, 2015 to 31 May, 2017, and a final report is currently being prepared on the pilot.