It has been announced that €590,000 in additional core funding has been granted for Windmill Therapeutic Centre in Wexford town and Cumas Centre in New Ross.
Once-off funding for Windmill Therapeutic Centre in Wexford for 2023 has increased from €188,000 to €200,000 and will become core funding rather than one off funding from 2024. A further increase in their funding will give the organisation the capacity to provide pension contribution arrangements for their staff.
Meanwhile the Cumas Centre in New Ross will also benefit from the provision of €140,000 as part of core funding from 2024 onwards. This finding will give Cumas additional capacity in facing challenges related to their services.
Speaking about the announcement Wexford TD and Minister of State for Law Reform James Browne TD says :
“I’m delighted to confirm this very positive news for Windmill Therapeutic Centre and Cumas Centre. These excellent disability services are a credit to the staff, management and parents who have assisted in keeping these services on a strong footing over the years. Since becoming a Minister of State, I have worked closely with my Government colleagues, including the Minister for Disabilities Anne Rabbitte T.D. I have constantly raised the issues affecting County Wexford disability service providers with Minister Rabbitte and in particular a meeting in Leinster House with the Minister, Deputy Paul Kehoe and Windmill and in the Ministers two visits to Cumas. Today we can see further fruits of this strong engagement on behalf of our county’s disability service providers.”
The Minister went on to say:
“Significantly, Minister Rabbitte and I also recognised the benefits of Cumas’s special project in assisting school leavers to secure post-school placements appropriate to their needs and level of dependency. With Pobal’s support for the project coming to an end, I’m delighted to confirm that the HSE will now agree the details related to the core establishment of the Cumas New Ross School Leaver Programme. The HSE core funding will amount to €250,000 every year.
Fianna Fáil Councillor in New Ross Michael Sheehan says: “As a Board Member and Local Cllr who lead the charge for this, I welcome it and thank Min Rabbitte and my local Oireachtas colleagues for their support. This is a great start and we will be revisiting the funding for additional after the Budget next Tuesday.”
