George Lawlor (Wexford, Labour)
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270. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will intervene, with the HSE, to ensure that funds are immediately released for the Wexford Strengthening Children's Disability Services project, which was formally approved by the HSE with a commitment that the initial payment would be processed in October (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [55978/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Government is committed to delivering and enhancing services to better support children with disabilities in Ireland.

The Children’s Disability Grant Fund aims to supplement the work of the Children's Disability Network Teams (CDNTs) by providing supports and services to children and their families who are currently waitlisted for services. To do this, the fund makes available €8 million for 52 organisations, to cover the cost of projects in full between 2025 and 2027.

The HSE has engaged intensively with shortlisted projects around the drawdown of funding and the financial and governance requirements in relation to the delivery of projects. The HSE have advised officials in this Department that they are working to finalise allocation of funding, where the HSE have confirmed recipients meet the grant requirements. Once agreements with applicants have been signed, payments are expected to issue within 7-10 working days.

The status of projects varies with some organisations/groups ready to commence and other organisations yet to confirm they wish to proceed with their project and/or provide required financial and governance documentation.

I am aware that there have been delays with some projects, as the HSE continues to work to support all applicants to complete and provide all required paperwork. I have requested the HSE to provide a detailed update on the project in question and I will respond to the Deputy with further details as soon as possible.