Teenage activist preparing for 50-hour sleepout outside Dáil

By Cillian Sherlock, Press Association

A teenage activist is preparing another 50-hour sleepout protest outside Leinster House over what she calls a “national crisis” in assessments of need (AONs).

An AON is carried out to identify if a child or young person has a disability and is designed to identify their health needs as well as service requirements.

Once the HSE receives an application, there is a legal requirement for the AON to be completed within six months.

The waiting list for AONs has soared over 2025, with just 7 per cent being completed on time.

Cara Darmody, 15, from Ardfinnan, Co Tipperary, has long criticised State failures in delivering assessments on time.

She staged a 50-hour protest outside Leinster House in May and is repeating the demonstration on Tuesday.

She was initially motivated to pursue her advocacy because her two brothers, Neil, 12, and John, eight, have autism and severe/profound intellectual disabilities.

Cara said they were “both failed dramatically by the state” in relation to the assessments and services that they received.

However, she stressed that her advocacy is focused on the national picture rather than solely on the experiences of her brothers.

Cara will be supported by opposition parties as she launches her protest, which will coincide with a two-hour debate on a motion about assessments of need in the Dáil.

Cara expressed disappointment in the visibility of a national recruitment campaign for therapists and psychologists to complete AONs.

She said: “Private providers that I spoke to, which was the target market, weren’t aware of it.

“Shockingly, many HSE therapists that we spoke to also weren’t aware of the campaign, so even their own people didn’t know it was happening.

“My big ask of the Government is very simple. Enough talking and making excuses – activate an emergency plan immediately, nationally and internationally, to find therapists.”