Backing for dedicated disability officer at Leitrim County Council

Leitrim County Council is being urged to appoint a dedicated full-time Access and Inclusion Officer to improve disability services and accessibility across the county

Published 19th Jul 2026, 18:05 BST Councillors discussed disability access at last week’s meeting of Leitrim County Council, with a motion calling for the appointment of a dedicated Access and Inclusion Officer. | stock image Leitrim County Council is being urged to appoint a dedicated full-time Access and Inclusion Officer to improve disability services and accessibility across the county Sign up to our Leitrim Live newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know you can manage your profile, and explore all of the available newsletters from Leitrim Live within your account.

The importance of Leitrim County Council having a staff member to work on disability issues was highlighted at last week's meeting of the Council.

Cllr Brendan Barry tabled a motion on the issue. In his motion, he called for the Irish Wheelchair Association's 'Access It's No Joke Campaign' and a commitment to appoint a dedicated, full-time and fully resourced Access and Inclusion Officer to co-ordinate disability services.

His motion also asked, “What additional measures has Leitrim County Council taken to enact the provisions of the Disability Act 2005, in the last 5 years?”

Cllr Barry told the meeting that “21 local authorities have passed this motion. My son uses a wheelchair and is visible. However, there are disabilities that are not visible.”

“We need to have the ambition to strive to do this,” he added.

Speaking to the Leitrim Observer about his motion, the Drumshanbo based councillor reacted to the reply from the Council, which outlined that staff members were allocated duties in relation to disability issues.

“Those people are doing those roles along with other roles. I am asking for a dedicated officer in the council to work on these issues,” he stated.

“My son is in a wheelchair. His disability is very obvious, but there are people with less visible conditions, such as autism,” he explained.

Cllr Barry went on to state that creating greater awareness of these less visible conditions would be positive.

“If a child is acting up in a queue, they may have a condition and perhaps people could accomodate this,” he stated.

“The Council are trying to create this role, but it comes down to funding,” he added.

The motion was supported by Cllr Paddy O'Rourke (FF). “It is regrettable if there are issues in relation to disability access in 2026. We need to get this moved on,” he stated.

Cllr Padraig Fallon (SF) also supported the motion. “Another thing that this local authority could do to facilitate people with disabilities would be to provide these people with work experience,” he commented.

On behalf of the Council, Director of Services, Mary Quinn, said that, “Under the age friendly programme, the council continues to identify sources of funding. There is also a review of the National Disability Strategy due.”

A reply from the Council stated, “Leitrim County Council is committed to making our services accessible to all people and to carry out its responsibilities under the Disability Act 2005.

“Leitrim County Council currently has an Access Officer (Information), Access Officer (Built Environment) and Designated Disability Officer in place,” the reply added.