Written answers
Thursday, 18 December 2025
Department of Children, Disability and Equality
- Children in Care
5. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps her Department is taking to tackle the rate of exploitation by criminal gangs of children in the State care system; if she... - Disability Services
6. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current number of children in Cork North-West and across County Cork waiting for assessment and intervention through... - Disabilities Assessments
8. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to the recent changes to the assessment of need, AON, process as announced by her Department, the expected impact these... - Disability Services
10. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to urgently address the shortfall in respite beds across Kerry for both adults and children; her plans to address this issue; and if... - Early Childhood Care and Education
11. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps her Department is taking to address the ongoing lack of affordable early learning and childcare places, particularly for... - Disability Services
16. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current number of children in Cork North-West and across County Cork waiting for assessment and intervention through... - Early Childhood Care and Education
17. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her Departments plans to expand and strengthen childcare provision in east Galway, including measures to increase capacity, support... - Disabilities Assessments
19. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will clarify what will be entailed in the education-specific reforms to the assessment of need process; and if she will make a... - Childcare Services
20. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if consideration has been given for capital funding for community based not-for-profit childcare facilities. [72882/25] - Disability Services
24. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when funding will be allocated for the establishment of a community neurorehabilitation team in the north-west, in line with the... - Disabilities Assessments
27. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if recruitment has commenced for the expansion of the 11 proposed inreach specialist teams, and for the additional assessment and... - Disability Services
29. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the details of privately outsourced disability day services her Department has contracted for the years 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and... - Disability Issues
31. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the reason for the delay in a European disability card being available to Irish citizens. [72879/25] - Childcare Services
33. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the measures she is taking to reduce childcare costs in Kerry. [72875/25] - Disabilities Assessments
34. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of assessments of need that were completed through private outsourcing and the number completed by statutory services for... - Children in Care
35. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in State care or known to child protection services who died as a result of suspected foul play, homicide,... - Childcare Services
36. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department has carried out analysis of the profitability of small childcare providers in the context of historical core... - Nursing Homes
38. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the projected investment of her Department in implementation of the Ombudsman’s Wasted Lives report for the year 2026; the... - Family Resource Centres
39. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department is aware of the additional demands being put on the family resource network from other Government and... - Childcare Services
40. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps her Department is taking to ensure that childcare providers across the country have access to sustainable funding. [72978/25] - Children in Care
41. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in State care who have died in the past fifteen years, by the breakdown of the cause of death; and if she will... - Childcare Services
42. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the measures being taken to identify childcare services in Cork city and county that are experiencing difficulties with core funding;... - Health Services
44. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she plans to establish a local, nurse-led respite facility in County Laois, where children with complex medical needs can access... - Childcare Services
45. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the supports her Department can provide to a group (details supplied) in County Galway in its efforts to establish a new community... - Disability Services
46. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps her Department is taking to fill the staff vacancies in the CDNT in County Louth. [72977/25] - Disabilities Assessments
47. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the details of the changes that will be made to the Disability Act 2005 in relation to assessment of need; and if she will make a... - Irish Language
48. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the way in which her Department intends to support and develop Irish language naíonraí, particularly those in the... - Disabilities Assessments
49. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current average waiting times for assessment of need determinations under the Disability Act 2005, broken down by CHO area, in... - Legislative Measures
50. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps she is taking to alleviate the concerns of an organisation (details supplied) ahead of the introduction of new regulations;... - Disabilities Assessments
51. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in Cavan and Monaghan who received an assessment of need within the statutory timeframe in the years 2020 to... - Disability Services
52. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the work her Department is undertaking to improve access to respite in Galway; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [73191/25] - Childcare Services
54. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the measures being taken to protect and assist parents whose childcare providers are leaving core funding; and if she will make a... - Disability Services
55. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide an update on the establishment of an MS community worker in the Sligo–Leitrim area, which is currently the only... - Disabilities Assessments
56. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when changes to assessment of need will come into force; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [73266/25] - Childcare Services
58. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the likely timeline for publication of the detailed specifications for future building blocks schemes in 2026; and if she will make a... - Disabilities Assessments
59. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of publicly funded private assessments of needs delivered in Cork in 2025; and the number delivered publicly. [71672/25] - Childcare Services
60. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the way in which she will urgently build childcare capacity; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71913/25] - Disability Services
61. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently awaiting therapy services under children's disability network teams, CDNTs; the average waiting time... - Children in Care
62. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children who have reported they were victims of human trafficking while in State care in each of the past five years.... - Disabilities Assessments
63. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children on the waiting list for an assessment of need in counties Cavan and Monaghan, respectively; and the number... - Childcare Services
64. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the timeframe in which she intends to bring forward a plan to achieve a reduction in the cost of childcare to €10 per day.... - Disabilities Assessments
65. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the changes made to assessment of need; the benefits that will be brought with these changes; and if she will make a statement on the... - Childcare Services
66. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality her plans to deal with childcare facilities that have been affected by defective concrete blocks; and if she will make a statement on... - Disability Services
68. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the costs associated with privately outsourced residential services for people with disabilities for the years 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024... - Childcare Services
70. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when the next round of funding for the building blocks scheme will be announced. [73391/25] - Disabilities Assessments
71. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the way in which the plans announced recently for assessment of needs will help to reduce waiting list for the 18,000 children... - Disability Services
72. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the level of staff vacancies across the AON teams and CDNTs in Dublin, in tabular form; the measures the HSE has undertaken to... - Disabilities Assessments
74. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if the recently announced reforms to the assessment of need process will address regional disparities, especially in Cork where there... - Rights of People with Disabilities
75. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if the First Programme Plan of Action to deliver the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 will make... - Childcare Services
76. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide an update on the measures being taken by her Department to increase the provision of childcare places in east Cork; and if... - Disabilities Assessments
80. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the greatest length of time a child is waiting in Laois-Offaly to have a referral for an assessment of needs, AON; and the greatest... - Childcare Services
81. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she is considering a review of the childminding sector, appreciating that current regulations do not allow childminders to hire an... - Disabilities Assessments
82. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the details of the way in which she envisages the new assessment of need process working; and if she will make a statement on the... - Disability Services
83. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the reason that CDNT 8 of CHO 7 based in Chamber House, Tallaght, has not seen an increase in staffing or resources given the... - Equality Issues
84. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will provide an update on the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy II - Action Plan 2024-2026; the measures that are... - Early Childhood Care and Education
85. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the plans to increase public funding for early learning and care and school-age care to bring it up to the same level as other... - Childcare Services
86. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department has conducted or commissioned any recent analysis of the financial sustainability of small and medium-sized... - Early Childhood Care and Education
88. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality for an update on the implementation of a programme of acquisition and fit-out of State-led early learning and childcare services, as... - Children in Care
89. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently missing from Tusla’s care; and the longest length of time any one child has been missing.... - Departmental Strategies
90. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will provide an update on the National Strategy for Women and Girls 2025-2030; the measures still outstanding; and if she will... - Children in Care
91. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the total number of children who have been reported missing from Tusla’s care since the agency was founded; the number... - Childcare Services
92. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will provide an update on the programme for Government commitment to provide capital investment to build or purchase... - Disability Services
93. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the way in which her Department is ensuring that multi-annual capital funding for disability services in Dublin Bay North is aligned... - Disabilities Assessments
95. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current average waiting times for early intervention autism assessments across the Cork region; the actions being taken by her... - Childcare Services
97. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the actions she is taking to address the shortage of creche and preschool places in south Dublin; if her attention has been drawn to... - Disability Services
98. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the supports her Department has in place to expand resources at locations (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the... - Disabilities Assessments
99. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of additional staff for Longford for the assessment of need system as part of the Progressing Disability Services Roadmap...
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