Adult disability services ‘very limited’ in this region – parent

The transition from childhood to adulthood in the McAloon household in Scotstown means worrying about the lack of adult respite services in County Monaghan.

Special Needs Active Parents group chairperson, Paddy McAloon, is on the campaign trail for his own two children with disabilites and others in the Monaghan area. SNAP has three goals for the county - to get a children’s respite house, to seek a special school for County Monaghan and adult day services for the Farney county.

“In terms of adult services, for someone like my son, it’s very limited,” he told the Celt.

Now aged 17 years, Paddy’s son will soon sign off with the CDNT and move to adult services.

Paddy praised the CDNT team members as being “fantastic” but feels they are “so understaffed” it makes it difficult for them to perform their jobs.

“In a lot of areas, it’s a big let-down. It’s not the CDNT Monaghan staff’s fault but, if you don’t have the staff, you can’t run.”

“There needs to be something done to make it more attractive to stay [in the service],” he believes.

“The people who are running our country need to sit down and listen for a change because they are getting it very wrong.”

In Paddy’s experience over the past few years, he says services “have got a lot worse” and to compensate he and his wife have “educated ourselves and we fight every day[for services and supports]”.

“Every single day, every single service has to be fought for. That’s not the way it should be and there’s children who are not getting them [services].”

“If the minister would sit and listen to some parents... They probably could learn a lot,” he says.

The county now has a temporary respite house for children and their families at Rainbow Lodge in Monaghan.

However a HSE spokesperson has told the Celt that the HSE have purchased a new premises “suitable” for the renovation and development of a HSE respite centre for children. The premises is located at Drumbear, Ballybay Road in Co. Monaghan where the design plan was updated in August this year and is now undergoing review.

“HSE Capital and Estates Dublin & North East will then complete a capital project to prepare the property to deliver a five-bedroom residential respite facility,” a HSE spokesperson informed the Celt, adding that it has been “advised” that this project “should be completed” in final quarter of 2026.

Rainbow Lodge is owned and run by The Talbot Group in partnership with the HSE and has been up and running for the past twelve months.

The SNAP group is trying to “put pressure on” to have the facility changed to an adult respite centre when the current children’s service moves to its new permanent location.

“It’s an excellent opportunity, it’s sitting there, ready to go,” he describes.

“One of the great things that Rainbow Lodge has that not every respite house has is an apartment off to the side of it. That means children or adults with a bit more needs can be accommodated.”

Paddy’s two sons with additional needs have attended Rainbow Lodge, and he highly praised the service provided there. “It’s great, it’s a real lifeline for a lot of people.”

He hopes it can be utilised for adult services going forward. “It’s there, it’s staffed, it’s set up, everything. It would be a no-brainer to keep it on.”

“There is a real need for it,” he urges for young adults like his son.

However, according to the HSE spokesperson the Rainbow lodge facility located at Urbalkirk “does not meet the requirements of national policy based on location”.

The national HSE disability policy ‘New Directions’ sets out that day services should take the form of individualised outcome focused supports in a building which accommodates “twenty five to thirty persons maximum” the spokesperson stated.

“This is to allow adults using those services to live a life of their own choosing in accordance with their own wishes, needs and aspirations within their local community. Day service locations are required to be located in the heart of one’s own community and within the vicinity of other community services. Where possible integrated service locations are recommended,” the spokesperson stated.

“Definitely disappointed,” is how Mr McAloon felt upon seeing the response from the HSE.

“No one is willing to sit around a table and talk about it seriously, we just want to be heard.

“The option is right in front of their nose, they just need to waken up and see what’s in front of them,” he opined.

“Personally I just don’t feel like us families are important to them.”

Adult day services in the county are currently provided at the Daily Activation Unit (DAU) at St Davnet’s Campus in Rooskey, Monaghan. It has recently taken four school leavers from The Holy Family School in Cootehill, which Mr McAloon said is “fantastic.”

“They need to get a proper building that can offer a different space for all the different age groups, and offer more space for school leavers. My son is leaving school in the coming year and I would love to see him go there. A lot of these places are at capacity and, unless somebody decides to quit them or passes away, you’re not getting the space.

“The HSE have told me that they have a site picked within the town [for adult services].. But again that’s it and we’ve been chasing them twelve months and we’re not getting any further,” he explains.

While he said the local politicians and senators have been “helpful” he said: “We need them to push this.”

The HSE spokesperson said there is an “identified need” for capital investment in Adult Day Services nationally and in the Cavan and Monaghan area “with a number of projects currently progressing through capital programmes.”

The spokesperson confirmed that a “comprehensive submission” for capital funding for a new Day Services premises to replace the Monaghan Day Activation Unit premises, based on the St Davnet’s campus in Monaghan Town, was completed. This submission was approved at the February 2024 meeting of the National HSE Capital and Property Steering Committee.

“HSE Disability Services are working with HSE Capital and Estates Dublin & North East to consider the best option for the delivery of the mainstream and high support elements within the Day Activation Unit. A number of options are currently being examined with a view to finalising once a property for the Day Activation Unit is identified,” they stated.

Special school

Meanwhile, the group also set out to get a special school in County Monaghan, which has been temporarily located in Castleblayney. Monaghan Community Special School, in its initial planning days, was due to hold “45 to 65 kids”.

“In their wisdom the powers that be decided they’d set up a school for 18 children on a site with practically no room for expansion,” Mr McAloon remarked on the current setup.

The school officially opened to students on October 13 and, while Mr McAloon praised the “fantastic” principal and staff there, he said it is “completely full with a waiting list”.

“That means there are kids in Monaghan who are not getting a school placement or a suitable school placement. I can say that because I am one of those parents,” he explains.

“We were promised a school to suit Monaghan and its needs, we haven’t got it.”

He described it as both a “lifeline” and “fantastic” for the 18 students in the school, but said “we need the politicians to put the pressure on and we need the government to announce a permanent location”.

The father of five also says the school site “on a hill”, is “extremely narrow” with “limited” access and parking.

“It’s in an area where there is already a school next door to it and a school across from it. The building that the school is in now had originally been condemned by the Department of Education,” he adds.

“In the morning time and home time the road is bedlam.”

Mr McAloon said parents were “promised” a permanent school and that is what their children deserve.

In response, a spokesperson from a Department of Education spokesperson stated that the “state owned property” in Castleblaney has been “repurposed to a high standard” and this has “facilitated the establishment of Monaghan Community Special School for the 2025/26 school year.”

“The Department of Education and Youth and NCSE monitors the need for additional special school capacity very closely and will continue to monitor the situation in County Monaghan.

Regarding the permanent location, they stated: “The property at Castleblaney provides a good location for developing the school and the Department of Education and Youth will continue to engage with the patron, Cavan and Monaghan ETB in this regard.”

“The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is the statutory body responsible for the provision of special education and allocating supports for children with special educational needs.”