Children’s Disability Grant services 'outrageous' Cllr John Sheamais Ó Fearraigh

Sinn Féin’s Councillor for the Glenties Municipal District, Cllr John Sheamais Ó Fearraigh, has today hit out at the failure to provide emergency funding through the Children’s Disability Grant to services in Donegal.

One such service yet to receive the promised funding is Caring Capall, an Equine Therapy Centre in Falcarragh.

Speaking today, Cllr Ó Fearraigh said:

“The Children’s Disability Grant was designed as an emergency interim measure to alleviate pressure from the Children’s Disability Network teams in Donegal who are currently in crisis.

Caring Capall are yet to be told if they are to be awarded the Children's Disability Grant. They were told they would be accepted/rejected in the first few weeks of February and have received no contact regarding the decision. We believe every Donegal applicant to be in the same position.

“Caring Capall applied for this funding back in December.  It’s now April and they still haven’t received anything. This isn’t good enough.

“I’m also certain that they are not alone in having to wait for this funding.

“Caring Capall will have to turn people away if the funding they are entitled to is not forthcoming. They desperately need this support.

“Given the incredible work that Caring Capall has done since it opened back in April last year, this is outrageous and was completely avoidable.

“Deputy Pearse Doherty and I witnessed first-hand how much of an impact the therapy provided has on children when we visited the centre and saw the therapy in action back in December.

“The National HSE Disability Services manage the Children’s Disability Grant and they must provide an explanation for why there has been such a delay with what was supposed to be emergency funding.

“Sinn Féin have written to them and to government seeking an explanation.”