Watch: Ann Boyle and Teach Owey feature on HSE's community-based homes video

Over the last seven years, the HSE has opened eight community-based homes across Donegal.

These houses were chosen carefully based on the needs and wishes of the residents and their families. Residents from institutional settings moved out to these community-based homes over the last number of years. Residents have settled very well into their new homes and have become an integral part of their communities, making friends with neighbours and participating in local activities.

A video by the HSE captures the essence of community living from the resident’s perspective, featuring Ann Boyle, a resident of Teach Owey, in west Donegal - a purpose bungalow which opened in May 2023.

“It's very nice to live here, very safe, I picked all the lovely furniture for the room,” she says.

There has been a major change in the provision of support to persons with a disability.

There has been a move away from caring for persons in residential institutions to supporting them to live in their local communities. In 2012 the “Time to move on from congregated settings report” recommended that people who live in congregated settings should move to their own homes in the community with the support they need.

Community living offers the prospect of an improved lifestyle and quality of life over institutional care for people with disabilities. As a society, the supports we now provide for people with disabilities are driven by the values of equality, the right of individuals to be part of their community, to plan for their own lives and make their own choices, and to get the personal supports they need for their independence.

Edel Quinn, Head of Service for Disabilities for Community Healthcare Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan, Sligo (CH CDLMS) commented: “This move to community living or decongregation process as a whole has been a huge undertaking and is still ongoing. It would not be possible without the support of the residents, families, staff and the HSE. It is important to acknowledge the positive impact the move to community living is having on transforming the lives of people living with intellectual disabilities.”