Thousands of children with disabilities 'left without vital early help'

Large sections of the country have no early intervention teams to help children with serious disabilities — risking potential havoc for their development.

Official figures show that while the HSE is attempting to shore up gaps in the disability sector, thousands of children are being left without vital early help for years — guaranteeing their conditions only get worse.

According to a parliamentary question response to Fianna Fáil’s disability, mental health, and special needs spokesman, Colm Keaveney, Dublin and Cork City have no early intervention teams for those in need of speech and language, occupational, and physiotherapy help.