Government misses disability assessment targets by 5,600

Ireland's government has fallen short of its target for completing Assessments of Needs (AON) for children with disabilities, missing its goal by 5,600 over a two-and-a-half-year period. The HSE's Roadmap For Service Improvement 2023 to 2026 had set a target of 19,042 completed assessments.

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It actually doesn't surprise me at all. We were still waiting two years and to this day he still doesn't have an actual complete assessment because they've never given him a cognitive assessment.

According to the HSE's final report, the plan achieved 11,872 AONs and reassessed an estimated 1,570 Preliminary Term Assessments (PTA). PTAs conducted in 2020 required reassessment following a 2022 High Court ruling that found them in breach of the 2005 Disability Act. The HSE and the Department of Children, Disability and Equality have acknowledged the shortfall.

The HSE reported a significant increase in AON applications, receiving 13,186 in 2025, a five-fold rise since 2008. While efforts have been made to address waiting lists, with a 43% increase in AON completions from 2024 to 2025, the backlog remains a critical issue. Jane Allen, a mother from Finglas, Dublin, shared her frustration, stating her son Jack has been waiting over two years for a complete assessment, including a cognitive assessment, which has delayed access to necessary therapies and impacted his schooling.

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Now all of that reflects on schooling, therapies and different things, and we still haven't got any therapies to this day for Jack.

Despite the missed targets for assessments, the roadmap saw some improvements. Staffing levels within Child Disability Network Teams (CDNTs) improved, with vacant posts falling from 29% to 18%. The number of children awaiting their first contact with a CDNT also decreased from 16,500 to over 9,300. However, the ongoing challenge of long waiting lists for disability services like occupational therapy and speech therapy persists.

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So when he had his assessment done back in June 23, they actually had to outsource that to a private company because they just don't have the staff to do them.