Written answer
Disability Services
Thomas Gould raised the lack of residential beds for children with disabilities in Cork and the crisis facing families. The Minister of State acknowledged limited capacity, said children should generally be supported at home through CDNTs and respite, and stated that the HSE is working to develop additional specialist and residential supports.
76. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether she is aware that there are no available residential beds for children with disabilities in Cork city and that parents in crisis are being forced to leave their children in emergency departments because their calls for help are continuously ignored. [65643/26]
Comment on this
From the outset, I would very much like to recognise the vital work carried out by families and those who are caring for children with disabilities, while also acknowledging the impact this has on a carers' physical and mental health. This Government is committed to providing and expanding a range of services to support children and adults with disabilities, and to support their families.
Budget 2026 represented a funding increase of €628 million, which was an increase of almost 20% compared to 2025. That Budget followed significant year-on-year funding increases, with an overall increase of €1.85 billion, or 91% since 2020. HSE Specialist Disability Services now has a record budget of €3.9 billion. This funding is supporting a range of services for people with disabilities, including day services, respite services, residential services, home support and personal assistance.
Regarding future funding, consideration of Specialist Disability Services and funding requirements occurs annually as part of the Estimates process. Engagement is currently ongoing between the Department of Children, Disability and Equality and the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation in respect of funding for 2027.
In respect of residential placements for children in County Cork, the HSE advises that the HSE's overarching policy approach for children with disabilities is that children should be supported to live at home with their families wherever possible.
In the South West region, children with complex needs are supported through Children's Disability Network Teams (CDNTs), which provide multidisciplinary assessment and intervention services.
Where families highlight additional support requirements, these needs are assessed and applications may be progressed for enhanced supports to enable children to remain safely at home.
Supports may include a range of day, evening and overnight respite options, based on assessed need and service availability.
Residential services for children with disabilities are regulated by HIQA and are generally intended for children with exceptionally complex care needs who require highly specialised support arrangements where community and family based supports are not sufficient to safely meet those needs.
There are currently very limited residential placement options available for children with disabilities within the South West region. Where a residential placement is identified as clinically required, the HSE works with available providers at local and national level to identify appropriate options based on assessed need and available capacity.
I am advised that HSE South West continues to engage at both local and national level to develop additional capacity and strengthen supports across the continuum of disability services, including respite, intensive community supports and specialist placements where required.
Families experiencing significant challenges are encouraged to maintain engagement with their local CDNT and relevant HSE services so that emerging needs can be assessed and appropriate interventions considered.
The HSE continues to encourage families to engage with local disability services to ensure that high-support needs and situations of family stress or crisis are identified at the earliest opportunity and considered through the appropriate clinical and service pathways.
Service demand continues to exceed current capacity in some areas. Ongoing efforts are focused on securing additional resources to support service development and address identified needs.
This Government is committed to support the HSE to support children and adults with disabilities through a range of services. The HSE continues to work locally and nationally to enhance capacity across disability services and improve access to appropriate supports for children and their families.