Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 February 2026
148. Deputy Catherine Callaghan asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps being taken to increase the early provision of SLT facilities to children in the Down's syndrome community in Carlow and Kilkenny; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [13259/26]
View answerUnder the Programme for Government, the Government is committed to ensuring children and their families who need early intervention and therapy input can access that support in a timely way.
There are 93 Children’s Disability Network Teams, they provide services and supports for children with complex clinical needs aged from birth to 18 years of age.
There are currently 12.65 Whole time Equivalent (WTE) Speech and Language therapists (SLT) across the three CDNT’s in Carlow and Kilkenny of which, 9.85 WTE are filled. Since 2023, two additional WTE Speech and language therapy posts have been funded for CDNT’s across Carlow and Kilkenny.
Regarding children with Down Syndrome, some indicative figures from CDNTs indicate an average of 4.3% of total caseloads across teams have Down Syndrome, ranging from 2.3% to 6.1%.
It is important to note that Children with Down syndrome can access Primary Care Speech and Language therapy services in Carlow and Kilkenny.
Through the roadmap for Service Improvement, Disability Services for Children and Young People, a series of actions have been progressed to improve access to Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNTs). These teams provided supports to 44,739 children with complex needs as of the end of December 2025.
The HSE are currently developing a Service Improvement Plan 2026-2027-Disability Services for Children and Young People, which will build on and improve works started under the Roadmap.
The Government has provided funding for additional posts to enhance the capacity of CDNTs and shorten waiting times in recent years, with further investment in Budget 2026 to fund 150 posts for CDNTs and clinical trainee places. In Budget 2026 alone, more than €3.8 billion has been allocated for Disability Services, which represents an overall increase since 2020 of €1.8bn.
The HSE is working to ensure timely access to children requiring services and to reduce waiting times for Speech and Language therapies.
I will continue to engage with the HSE, the Department, service providers and families to ensure that children with disabilities receive the supports they require in a timely manner.
