New children's respite centre in Ashbourne not accessible to kids in Meath

A newly-opened children's respite centre in Ashbourne is not accessible to kids in Meath.

The facility at Pinewoods, Ashbourne, aims to provide quality respite care for children with disabilities and their families and carers but was commissioned by the Community Healthcare Organisation (CHO) Dublin North City & County and will only deliver services for the population of Dublin North City & County.

Responding to a query by Meath East Deputy Thomas Byrne, the Minister for Health, Simon Harris confirmed the facility, whilst geographically based in Co. Meath, is being delivered by CHO Dublin North City and County in conjunction with Praxis Care and will serve the population of Dublin North City & County.

"In 2018, an additional €10m was approved by Government to fund respite houses nationally. As part of this initiative, CHO Dublin North City & County commissioned a new Children’s Disability Respite which was officially opened on the 13th February 2019.

"This very welcome additional service will provide a seven night service with five individual bedrooms resulting in a minimum of 1,200 bed nights annually. The service aims to provide quality respite care for children with disabilities and their families and carers who currently receive services from CHO Dublin North City and County, private Disability Providers and Voluntary Organisations. 

"I can confirm that it was always the intention that this service would serve the population of this CHO. This additional service will supplement the existing Bower House, Balbriggan which opened in April 2018 and is operated by Talbot Group. This respite centre is jointly funded by CHO DNCC and CHO Midlands, Louth Meath with an equal share of beds for each CHO."

Deputy Thomas Byrne reacted to the Minister's response with dismay.
"A new respite service for children with disabilities was opened by the Government and local ministers on the 13th February in Ashbourne. A reply to me in the Dáil confirms what I discovered, that the service in Ashbourne is not open to local Meath families but only to children from north Dublin. This is a crazy scenario. Needless to say, it's an issue I'll be pursuing, as Meath is well behind the curve on disability services!"

Deputy Byrne said he would be calling for an explanation as to why Meath children are excluded from the facility "particularly when there is such a demand for such services in the county."  

Local Cllr Gillian Toole, who recently resigned from Fine Gael said, "Money to fund this service came from the CHO9 budget, however HSE fail to notice that their budget is made up of taxation of residents in this constituency! If you're living on the Meath/ Dublin 15 border you MIGHT get an overnight there and if your child is under 18."

The opening of the new centre in Ashbourne was attended by Ministers Finian McGrath, Helen McEntee and Regina Doherty. Commenting on her Facebook page at the time, Minister Doherty said she was very happy to attend the opening of the house that would provide "a respite facility for children with disabilities in the area."

Speaking at the official opening of the respite facility which is operated by Praxis Care, Mairead Lyons, Head of Social Care, CHO DNCC said ‘The HSE very much welcomes the additional funding from Government which has enabled the development of this much needed residential respite service to address the needs identified by children and their families and carers in CHO Dublin North City & County. The CHO commissioned this Children’s Disability Residential Respite Service in order to meet the needs of children and families with moderate to high support needs living in the catchment area.