WE'RE LEFT SPEECHLESS

>>82,000 kids on waiting list for key services

- BY LOUISE BURNE Political Correspondent

ALMOST 82,000 children are waiting for speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and psychology appointments, stark new figures have revealed.

Figures given to Sinn Fein TD Claire Kerrane show 32,991 kids have been waiting for more than a year.

In total, 81,661 children were on waiting lists at the end of March for essential therapies.

Of these, 35,897 youngsters were waiting for a speech and language therapy appointment.

This included 18,215 kids who were waiting for an initial assessment.

Of these, 501 children have been waiting for more than two years for an appointment, while 1,183 have been on the list for between a year-and-a-half and two years.

Another 3,373 children are waiting between a year and a year-and-a-half.

Some 6,945 children are awaiting an initial speech and language therapy appointment.

The figures also revealed 293 kids have been waiting for more than two years, while 804 have been waiting between 18 and 24 months.

In addition, 10,737 children are awaiting further speech and language therapy treatment appointments, with 1,308 waiting more than 18 months.

PSYCHOLOGY

Some 24,792 children are waiting for psychology appointments.

This includes 3,215 youngsters under the age of five and 21,577 children older than five but under 18.