Disability Services
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-19
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Emer Higgins (FG), Dublin Mid-West

In terms of staffing, this year's budget has allocated €8 million, which will provide for 150 new staff across our CDNTs. We will prioritise the placement of those new staff on the teams that have the highest vacancy rates. That is to make sure that we are providing more therapies to children who need them and who are waiting longer on lists. It is also to make sure that we are supporting the staff who are working with those CDNTs, which we need to do.
In regard to Deputy Clendennen and his constituents who have gotten assessments and then gone to their CDNTs, to be really clear, families do not need an assessment to go to their CDNT. They just need to be referred. Families can self-refer or they can get a referral through their school, public health nurse or whatever it may be. It is really important that people are referred as early as possible.
In Deputy Clendennen's own area, I know there are there CDNTs in Laois-Offaly. At the end of last year, there were 2,077 children who were open caseloads on the CDNTs. That means they have been in contact with CDNTs and there are 89 children on the waiting list.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-19/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:40+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-19