Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 June 2023
530. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth how much it would cost his Department to introduce a €500-per-month payment for the families who have a child/children participating in the AIMs programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29599/23]
View answerI understand from further clarification that the intent of this payment is to benefit families to support the unmet needs of the child.
It should be noted that income supports fall under the remit of the Department of Social Protection and this question may be more appropriate to that Department.
The Access and Inclusion model (AIM) provides supports without the need diagnosis in the context of the ECCE provision only and is therefore not an appropriate method to assess whether a family may require a payment for any unmet needs outside of this context.
Nevertheless, my Department has undertaken to calculate what such a payment might cost on the basis requested
The number of children approved for targeted supports under Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) Level 4, 5 and 7 supports for the 2022/23 programme call is 7,275.
Based on this figure, if each family were to receive a payment of €500 per-month for 12 months the cost would amount to over €43.5 million. To note, families may include more than one child receiving AIM support. It is not readily possible to identify the number of families with more than one child in AIM, however this likely to be a small number.
More broadly a whole-of-Government approach is required to ensure that everyday costs are reduced for people with disabilities and their families. Advancing disability-inclusive systems of social protection and support in Ireland establishes a critical foundation from which many essential human rights in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities can be realised.
Following the conclusion of the National Disability Inclusion Strategy, work is currently ongoing in DCEDIY to coordinate development of a new national disability strategy. It is important this strategy includes meaningful action to reduce day to day costs for people with disabilities and their families in Ireland.
The Cost of Disability in Ireland report, which was commissioned by the Minister for Social Protection and published in December 2021, will be an important contribution to the evidence base from which actions and commitments in this new strategy are developed across Government throughout 2023.
