Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 September 2026
651. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding the engagement she has had with the Before We Die campaign in relation to the funding and delivery of residential places for adults with intellectual disability and what progress has been made in this regard. [68326/26]
View answerI wish to thank the Deputy for raising this question.
I wish to acknowledge the ongoing commitment and dedication of all parents and carers involved with the ‘Before We Die' group and recognise their advocacy for increased residential service provision for people with disabilities. Both Minister Higgins and I have met with representatives from the group on a number of occasions, to listen carefully to their lived experiences and daily realities, and to gain a deeper understanding of the ongoing challenges faced by people with disabilities and their families.
The Programme for Government recognises the requirement for a whole-of-government approach to advance the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and in 2025, the Department for Children, Disability and Equality published the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030, which was developed with input from disabled people and representative organisations on the issues that matter the most to them.
The Department of Children, Disability and Equality and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, will work in collaboration with a number of other Departments and agencies including the HSE and Local Authorities, to advance Pillar 3 of the Strategy, which outlines a collective approach to provide a clear pathway for disabled people to access the supports they require to live independently and address societal barriers that impact on their daily lives.
As of August 2026, 9,015 specialist disability residential places are being delivered by approximately 90 service providers. Since 2020, additional funding provided to the HSE has supported the creation of over 1,000 additional residential places for people with disabilities. These placements largely support people moving from their family home to a residential service and are in addition to transitions from congregated settings.
This Government, together with the HSE, acknowledges that demand for residential services continues to be very high and is committed to the ongoing development of residential services for those who need them. In addition to funding existing placements, Budget 2026 provided an additional €65million to Disability Residential Services for new developments. As per the HSE’s National Service Plan 2026, this includes €40million of funding to provide in the region of 199 new residential responses, to include 152 newly created residential placements consisting of 72 planned placements under a new initiative and 80 Priority one placements to meet urgent need.
Funding has also been provided for other residential responses to facilitate necessary enhancements to enable the uptake of vacant residential places by new individuals and also the additional funding required for individuals already in an existing placement, where their needs have become more complex.
Importantly, the HSE’s National Service Plan for 2026 places an increased emphasis on longer term planning for residential placements, including the provision of planned residential placements under a new initiative, with strengthened operational processes being put in place to respond to the current high demand.
In addition, the HSE is progressing work to recruit new housing co-ordinators and residential planning and review teams, as funded in recent budgets. Included within the role of these new posts is the coordination and oversight of the delivery of new residential placements and to plan for future placements, many of which will be delivered in Local Authority housing.
Minister Browne and I, along with our Officials, have made significant progress, through the implementation structures established under the National Housing Strategy for Disabled People 2022-2027, in improving coordination with the Local Authorities and disability service providers at local, regional and national level.
This includes working collaboratively to support the setting of targets in the upcoming local authority Housing Development Action Plans (HDAPs) for two cohorts of disabled people, those living more independently in the community and those with greater support needs who require specialist disability residential services.
Further to the work outlined above, throughout 2026 the Department of Children, Disability and Equality is undertaking research and progressing policy development, with a view to developing a new policy framework for specialist residential services. The policy development process will consider a wide range of matters relevant to specialist residential services including models of service. Engagement and consultation with stakeholders, particularly those with lived experience, will be an important part of this policy development process.
