ARD CUAN respite centre on the Old Cabra Road in Dublin provides care for 84 families, among them young children and elderly parents in need of regular professional care.
The centre has provided people with Down syndrome and intellectual disabilities a break away from home for more than 15 years and has a waiting list of about two years.
However, Ard Cuan’s service provider, the Daughters of Charity, will close the centre in two weeks because the Health Service Executive has cut its funding this year by some €4.5 million.
The closure of the centre is the first in a series of expected cutbacks by the charity. At least 56 staff will lose their positions by the end of this year.
For the last year, Angie Kenny’s son Conor (14) has attended Ard Cuan on a monthly basis. Conor has Down syndrome and the centre is his only outlet outside school, his mother says.
Ard Cuan offers service users an opportunity to stay overnight at the centre, providing a break for families and also giving users an opportunity to integrate and make friends.
Conor stays in Ard Cuan for just two nights a month, which affords his family with a much-needed “night off”.
“Caring for a child with Down syndrome is very demanding and the respite centre gives families a break for an occasional night.”
Ms Kenny says families affected by the cutbacks will campaign against the closure of Ard Cuan because they feel their children and relatives are being targeted unfairly and disproportionately.
“Everything in Conor’s life has been a struggle and a fight so far. It’s a similar story for the families using Ard Cuan and other services provided by the Daughters of Charity.”
Ms Kenny said many of the families affected by the closure of Ard Cuan were at the Special Olympics in Limerick when the letter of notification was circulated to service users and their families.
Conor has attended the charity’s school at the St Vincent’s Centre on the Navan Road in Dublin since he was five years old and the centre is his only other outlet to meet new friends, Ms Kenny adds.
– STEPHEN MANGAN