Disabilities Assessments
Seanad Éireann — 2026-02-04
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Fiona O'Loughlin (FF), Administrative Panel

I thank the Minister of State for being here. She and the Government have acknowledged that the current system in relation to assessments of need is not fit for purpose. I welcome that, but families in Kildare and nationwide need to see that recognition matched with action, additional staffing, transparent timelines and a very clear plan to eliminate the existing backlog.
We acknowledge that there is a big backlog nationally. When we look at the figures, we can see that the scale of the backlog in CHO 7 in Kildare and west Wicklow is one of the largest in the country. As of May 2025, there were 1,692 children awaiting assessments of need. The majority of those had been waiting for more than six months. That is huge. Basically, when children do not get an assessment of need in a timely manner, it means they must wait longer for speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and early intervention supports. That is a major issue. These delays are not abstract. They have a very meaningful and negative impact on the children and their families, and undermine trust with families. It leaves families navigating crisis after crisis. It leaves them in a situation where applying for early childhood education places and primary school places is very difficult. I always feel that families know best. They know when there are developmental delays. They know when there are issues and their children are facing challenges. However, trying to just explain that without having a formal assessment of need is very difficult when they go looking for a place for their child in a special school or a special class as part of the DARE system within early childhood education. There is no doubt that families are being left behind, particularly those in Kildare.
We need urgent reform and urgent resourcing. It is simply far too long for children to have to wait for these vital healthcare services. Even when the assessments are carried out, we still see very large numbers of children waiting for the services, but at least they are on the list at that point. At least, they have a chance and an opportunity. For those who are waiting, the waiting list has gone up quite substantially, as I know from speaking to many families. There has been an increase of about 25% over the past two years in the number of families looking for an assessment of need, AON. Families are heartbroken because they want to do the very best for their child. Not having an assessment of need means they do not have the tools to be able to support their child in the way they wish to.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-02-04/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:35+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-04