Disabilities Minister Anne Rabbitte came to Monaghan yesterday to meet with various groups working with children and adults with special needs. The series of pre-arranged discussions included meetings with HSE staff, representatives from Monaghan adults respite service, Steadfast House, and a delegation from SNAP, the Special Needs Active Parents, support group. For some time, SNAP has campaigned to have dedicated children's respite services, full-time adult respite services and a special needs school for Monaghan.
At present, children with additional needs or need special education have to travel to Cavan for both. Monaghan remains one of only a few counties in Ireland without the specialist services. One parent from SNAP told Northern Sound previously, that marriages, parents' mental health and siblings of children with special needs in Monaghan have all suffered due to the lack of services. Northern Sound caught up with Minister Anne Rabbitte before she headed into the meetings with local people. She exclusively revealed Monaghan would get a new building for children's respite and while that is being procured and built, her department would provide "interim" accommodation, which, she estimates will be "ready to go" "within a 3-month turnaround".
A flustered Deputy Rabbitte said she was making the announcement yesterday before she was stood down as a junior minister at the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth later yesterday evening when the Taoiseach left office. "The fact of the matter is there's an awful lot of families in crisis and I want to recognise that," Deputy Rabbitte told Northern Sound, "The issue in relation to respite is that while, the capital plan has not been released at this moment, I have secured funding for 7/7 respite services for Monaghan for children services. I will be telling the parents when I meet with them later on. There is a capital project that will be landing for Monaghan, solely for Monaghan, but what I can tell you is that I will have an interim solution which I have secured funding for also."
