Written answers
Tuesday, 23 September 2025
Department of Children, Disability and Equality
Disability Services
Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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557. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her Department’s engagement with disabled persons’ organizations and other disability stakeholders in the preparation of the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49940/25]
Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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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 extensive and inclusive. The National Disability Authority has released a 196 page Consultation Report which can be found on their website.
The consultation was underpinned by principles of participation and aimed to be a genuine, accessible, and transparent process which meaningfully engaged with disabled people. During the consultation, the NDA and my Department proactively sought and gave due consideration and priority to the views and perspectives of Disabled Persons' Organisations (DPOs).
Issues and areas identified as key priorities by DPOs and other disability stakeholders during engagements with this Department in 2023 were used to inform, facilitate, and guide the consultation questions.
In addition to DPOs, people with disabilities and other disability stakeholders including families, parents, carers, and disability organisations were targeted and actively encouraged to participate in the consultation. Marginalised and seldom heard-from groups, such as disabled children and people with significant support needs were specifically included. Acknowledging the intersectionality of disability with other identities, women, migrants, Travellers, and members of the LGBTQI+ community were specifically targeted for consultation. A range of consultation activities were organised to allow different stakeholders choice in how they could engage. Consultation events were held at various times of the day, and during weekdays and the weekend.
Disability stakeholders engaged in consultation activities including:
- 34 focus group discussions involving 211 participants,
- 18 interviews with disabled individuals,
- Four large consultation meetings in Dublin, Cork, Galway, and online, including 166 attendees,
- 81 written and 4 video submissions from DPOs, disability organisations, individuals, and other interest groups,
- A national survey completed by 484 disabled people or carers, family members and supporters of people with disabilities.
The Deputy may wish to be aware that my officials will also implement robust stakeholder engagement structures in the coming months. In line with obligations under Article 4(3), Article 29(b) and Article 33(3) of the UNCRPD, these structures will be a fundamental feature of the monitoring and delivery structures guiding the Strategy’s implementation, ensuring that it continues to be responsive to the lived experiences of disabled people and the realities of their lives.
Fundamental to the monitoring of the Strategy’s implementation will be ensuring that disabled people continue to have a voice and a role in how their rights are realised. This will support the kind of holistic, person-centred policy that is envisaged by the Strategy and the UNCRPD, more broadly.
Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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561. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the supports available for young children with disabilities prior to accessing ECCE; the AIMs support available to children with disabilities before they are two years and eight months old; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50040/25]
Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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This Government is committed to ensuring that children and their families who need early intervention and therapy input can access that support in a timely way.
Children with disabilities are supported in the community by both Children’s Disability Network Teams and Primary Care.
The National Programme on Progressing Disability Services for Children and Young People or “PDS” is the guiding policy for children’s services. PDS is a needs-led model of service, where a child does not require a diagnosis to access services, and Children’s Disability Network Teams provide a multidisciplinary assessment of individual needs and strengths.
Children’s Disability Network Teams provide supports to children with complex needs. There are 93 Children’s Disability Network Teams aligned to 96 Community Healthcare Networks across the country. These teams are providing services and supports for nearly 45,000 children with complex needs, aged from birth to 18 years of age.
A significant focus of the Government is filling vacant posts within the 93 Children's Disability Network Teams.
HSE data from April 2025 shows there has been a nationwide increase of 26% in Children's Disability Network Team staffing levels since October 2023.
Most significantly, the Children's Disability Network Teams national vacancy rate has reduced from 29% in 2023 to 18% in 2025 - a reduction of 11 percentage points.
The HSE have also put in place strategies and supports for urgent cases on the waiting list, such as 1,052 children (and/or their parents) who are on the CDNT waiting list and participated in one or more individual and/or group intervention appointments during August 2025.
The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) was introduced in 2016 to ensure that children with additional needs or a disability could access and meaningfully participate in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme. As such, AIM is directly linked to ECCE participation and currently applies to children who meet the ECCE age eligibility criteria (i.e. 2 years and 8 months to 5 years 6 months).
In line with a commitment in First 5: A Whole-of-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families 2019-2028, an independent evaluation of AIM was undertaken in order to inform an extension of AIM beyond the ECCE programme as well as any potential enhancements to the model.
The findings from the evaluation were published in January 2024 and have informed the phased extension of AIM. From September 2024, AIM was expanded beyond time spent in the ECCE programme for ECCE-aged children. This allows children to access early learning and childcare for up to an additional 3 hours in term and 6 hours out of term.
It is intended that over time, all children with additional needs registered in early learning and care services will have access to supports under AIM. As with the current AIM-eligible cohort, these supports would be open to children based on individual needs. The nature of the supports required for children aged 0-3 will differ from those needed for the ECCE-aged cohort. To address this, officials in this Department are currently designing a tailored model to facilitate the extension of AIM supports to children under the age of three.
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