Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 December 2025
8. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked 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 changes will have on the timeline for those seeking an AON; the process by which children will now be able to avail of treatment, therapies and other services in a timely manner; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [73104/25]
View answer13. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to the recent changes to the assessment of need, AON, process announced by her Department, if she expects wait times to be impacted for those seeking an AON; the way in which the changes made to the AON process will impact the delivery of treatment and therapies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [73105/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 8 and 13 together.
The Government recognises that there are unacceptable delays in accessing Assessments of Need. My Department and the HSE are committed to addressing these delays.
Under the Disability Act, an Assessment of Need is an assessment process carried out by the HSE where a person is of the opinion that he/she may have a disability, for anyone born after 1st June 2002.
It first establishes whether the person has a disability (as defined within the Act). It then identifies the health and education needs of the person with a disability and the services required to meet those needs.
On December 9th, Government announced a series of reforms to the Assessment of Need process which will make the process more effective and efficient for children and families and move towards more assessments being delivered within the statutory 6-month timeframe.
These reforms include changes to Part 2 of the Disability Act, 2005, which provides for Assessments of Need. The General Scheme of the Disability (Amendment) Bill 2025 was approved by Government on 9 December and will be published on the Department’s website shortly.
These changes will not remove any rights for parents to apply for an Assessment of Need for their child, nor will they alter the statutory six-month timeline set out in the Disability Act.
Turning to access to treatment and therapies, I must emphasise that children do not require an Assessment of Need to access health services, including Primary Care, Children’s Disability Network Teams or Mental Health Services. However, it is recognised that there can be delays for children and families in getting access to the treatments and therapies they need.
Children can also be on a number of different waiting lists which can cause confusion for families. In 2026, the HSE will introduce a Single Point of Access system, which will make it easier for families to be referred to the right service - whether that is a Children’s Disability Network Team, Primary Care, or the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.
The recruitment of staff across the Disability Sector continues to be a key priority in ensuring children can access therapies in a timely manner. An intensive focus by my Department has been on increasing the staffing of Children’s Disability Network Teams who deliver supports and services to children with complex needs.
Data from April 2025 shows that there was a 26% increase in Children’s Disability Network Team staffing levels nationwide since October 2023. The impact of this can be seen in reduction of CDNT waiting lists which fell from nearly 13,000 children in January this year to just over 10,000 children by the end of September.
I am acutely aware that further improvements are required across the broader healthcare system to ensure that children receive the therapies they need in a timely manner.
I want to assure the Deputy that the provision of an effective and efficient delivery of assessments as well as therapies remains a priority for the Government.
