The HSE has applied for planning permission for the construction of a new, state of the art children's respite centre in Monaghan.
HSE bosses have now lodged plans with Monaghan County Council to knock an existing vacant house at Drumbear and Killygowan and develop a purpose built facility in its place.
The new centre, when complete, will have sufficient capacity to provide overnight respite care for up to five children together with staff facilities, sensory rooms, accessible bathrooms, and support spaces. A self-contained apartment is also included in plans that are now being assessed by local authority planning officials.
Parents, together with local politicians, have been calling for an intervention to end the daily commute that many families had been facing to secure respite services provision.
In 2024 Minister for Disabilities Anne Rabbitte pledged over €3m for a new state of the art facility to plug that shortfall. A temporary respite centre located in Urbalkirk opened its doors over a year ago with the goal of having a permanent centre in place,
County planners will decide on this application by the middle of March.
