Tony McCormack (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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106. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current average waiting time for assessments of need for children in County Offaly; the measures being taken by her Department to address delays in these assessments and ensure timely access to early intervention services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61544/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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This Government recognises that waiting times for Assessment of Need are too long. The provision of an effective and efficient Assessment of Need system continues to be a Government priority. Both this Department and the HSE are committed to addressing delays in the delivery of Assessments of Need and have been working intensively to progress measures to achieve this.

It is important to emphasise that, while children have a right to apply for an Assessment of Need, they do not need one in order to access health services, including those provided by Primary Care, Children’s Disability Network Teams or Mental Health Services. Nevertheless, demand for Assessments of Need has increased significantly in recent years, a reflection of both the increase in population and the number of families exploring all options for accessing services for their child.

The HSE system for collating Assessment of Need data does not provide detail on the waiting time for the delivery of Assessments of Needs. However, at a national level, the HSE reports that the average duration of the assessment process, where a report has been completed, is 27.15 months. This is for reports completed in Q3 of 2025. As this is a national figure, there will be regional variations with some AONs being delivered within a shorter timeframe.

Over the past 2 years, there has been a noted improvement in the number of completed Assessments. Over 4,100 were completed in 2024, an increase of 30% compared to 2023. HSE data shows this trend is continuing with a 57% year-on-year increase in completed assessments in the first nine months of this year.

This has been achieved by a number of measures, including the Assessment of Need Targeted Waitlist Initiative. The Initiative targets those families waiting longest for Assessments of Need, with the HSE reimbursing clinicians directly through the procurement of capacity from approved private providers. Recent HSE data shows that over 6,300 clinical assessments have been commissioned from private providers since the Initiative started in June 2024. Budget 2026 provides for the continuation of this Initiative next year with €20 million provided for the delivery of some 6,000 clinical assessments.

While it is important to use private capacity to support the completion of Assessments of Need into 2026, we cannot rely on the private sector indefinitely and we must ensure that the public system can meet the clearly growing demand. This Department is working with the HSE to ensure the delivery of actions to support the efficient delivery of Assessments of Need within the public system. This includes improved training for staff involved in the delivery of AONs, additional administrative supports, and changes to processes where necessary to ensure an efficient and effective system.

This Government is also committed to ensuring children and their families who need early intervention and therapy input can access that support in a timely way.

I am pleased to say that progress has been made in this regard in recent times. Over the past two years, the Roadmap for Service Improvement for Disability Services for Children and Young People has been the key vehicle for enhancing children’s disability services. Through this Roadmap, a series of actions have been progressed to improve access to Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNTs) who are providing supports and services to almost 45,000 children with complex needs. Waiting lists for CDNT services have reduced by 18% in the first 8 months of this year, from 12,920 to 10,579 children. This is a welcome improvement and one that must continue.

Recruitment and retention of Health and Social Care Professionals in CDNTs is a key Roadmap priority. Substantial effort and investment has been made in this regard. Funding was made available this year for the recruitment of 75 positions across the CDNTs, and Budget 2026 includes provisions for the funding of 150 posts next year.

This Department is working with the HSE to introduce specific recruitment and retention incentives for therapists to work in CDNTs. We also need to develop a pipeline of future therapists through the third level education system to meet the continuing need for health and social care professionals.

In June, the Government approved an expansion in training places from September 2025 in disciplines critical to disability, health and education services. Additionally alternative pathways into health and social care professions are being developed to widen access to critical skills areas. These include apprenticeships, tertiary programmes, graduate conversion and mature entry.

I can assure you that this Government will continually engage with the HSE, service providers and families to ensure that children with disabilities receive the therapies they need in a timely manner.