Donegal counselling service for children and adolescents to close due to lack of state funding

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THE PROVIDER OF a key Donegal counselling service for children, young people and adults has said it will have to close its doors from mid-March due to a lack of funding from the state.

The service provider, Raphoe Diocesan Pastoral Services, made the announcement on its website earlier this week while the issue was also raised in the Dáil today.

Based in Letterkenny, the not-for-profit organisation provides counselling services in seven outreach centres across Donegal county –  including Letterkenny, Dunfanaghy, Stranorlar, Creeslough and Buncrana.

In the update posted on its website, the organisation’s board of directors said the decision was made with “profound sadness and regret” and was due to a lack of public funding for a full-time director of counselling.

The centre has provided support to thousands in Donegal since it began delivering counselling services in 2010 and now has 120 people receiving counselling at any one time.

The organisation currently has a waiting list of more than 350 people seeking support.

The statement posted on its website read: “Despite consistent, exhaustive and explorative efforts in recent months to secure much needed rolling investment from the HSE and Tusla to finance these positions, it’s now been confirmed that no funding will be made available.

“Consequently, the Raphoe Diocesan Pastoral Services CLG has been forced to take the

extremely difficult decision to wind-down its counselling provision across Donegal.

“Services at the Pastoral Centre in Letterkenny and at all outreach centres across the county will cease to operate from mid-March.”

Since then, senior officials from the child and family agency Tusla have met with the organisation and a statement released by Tusla yesterday stated that it is committed to maintaining and supporting the services going forward.

Gerry Hone, Regional Chief Officer West North West, Tusla said: “I am fully aware of the significance of the counselling services provided by the Raphoe Diocesan Pastoral Services to communities across Donegal. We are committed to working with the organisation to help them to develop a sustainability plan so that they can continue to provide these important services in the area.

We are conscious of how the closure of this service would affect local communities and the concern that this has caused across the county. We will also look at how existing funding can be utilised to continue to provide essential supports.”

Raising the issue in the Dáil today, Sinn Féin TD for Donegal Pearse Doherty asked Minister of State for Mental Health Mary Butler if she had a chance to intervene in the matter.

It is where many of the families of the Creeslough tragedy turned to.

“Those who were victims themselves, families of the victims.

“I spoke to one mother who lost her beautiful daughter in the Creeslough tragedy, I know she was in contact directly with yourself as well.

“She talks about the support that she and her family get from this and the fact that the service now is in wind-down mode because they have been refused core funding is devastating to anybody who is availing of counselling services,” Doherty said.

“Anyone going through counselling knows the impact that it has on you maybe not knowing that the counsellor will be available to you in the next number of month,” he added.

In response, Minister Butler thanked Doherty for raising the issue and said she understands how important the service is.

Butler said a meeting has been scheduled by the HSE to review the funding request from the centre.

Butler said she would “stay over the details” and said: “It is a hugely important service and I was very much struck by somebody bereaved by the Creeslough tragedy that she reached out to my office”.