HADD – About Us and What We Do
WHO WE ARE
The HADD Family Support Group has been in existence for 30 years. It is a group of parents and professionals who have come together to raise awareness of the disorder and to offer support, information and advice through sharing experiences and resources.
Membership of HADD is open to any person with an interest in ADHD whether they are a parent, person with the condition or professional etc. We have a small annual membership charge.
Our activities are organised by a purely voluntary committee of mainly parents of who work in our office in the Carmichael Centre and from their homes. From late 2007 we have the voluntary services and support on education issues of Dr David Carey, psychologist and former Co-ordinator of Special Education at Froebel College in Dublin. If you would like to become involved in HADD’s work please contact us.
WHAT OUR MISSION IS
HADD’s mission is to make life better for persons with ADHD and their families.
WHAT WE AIM TO DO
- To help and support persons with ADHD/ADD and their families.
- To create a better understanding of ADHD and the difficulties people face because of it’s symptoms among teachers, the medical profession etc.
- To raise awareness of the consequences of un-treated ADHD, the benefits of treatment and also of the positive aspects of ADHD
- Provide an information sharing, advice and support network for parents, children, adults and professionals working with them.
- Influence government and state bodies to develop and improve Health, Education and other support services for children and adults with the disorder.
- Encourage and contribute to research into prevalence, causes, treatment and management of ADHD
Services we offer
- Telephone support line and email service for parents - open to members and non members
- Information leaflets
- Similar service for teachers, childcare workers, the medical professionals and others working with children with ADHD. This includes our resource for teachers “ADHD and Education”
- Regular mail-shots and newsletters to our members on news and developments in the area as well as feature articles.
- Regular informal parents and carers evenings on a variety of topics. See our News and Calendar for up-dates
- Talks by parenting, legal and education experts
- Conferences on ADHD which bring international experts on the condition to Ireland.
- Talks to parents groups, schools, childcare services etc
- Video and book lending library
- Submissions to state organisations promoting the interests of those with ADHD
- Representation of the interests of persons with ADHD and their families in various public and private fora.
- Third level student Pack – in collaboration with Trinity College Dublin, a resource for students has been developed. Launched at ADHD Action Week 2009.
HADD’S NEW SERVICES
- We are currently running a youth group for 16 to 19 year olds with ADHD. The focus will be to help young people with ADHD to make the best of their lives. These groups run for a period of 6 weeks. Please contact our office for information about partisipating in or organizing one for your area.
HADD’s Future Planned Projects
- Parent courses (e.g. Anger Management)
- Social skills course for younger children
- Extension of phone line to a seven day service
All of these planned projects are subject to availability of funding and resources of our committee to carry out the necessary work.
HADD submissions:-
- 2007. Submission to the Review Group on Reasonable Accomodations at State Exams
- 2006. Submission to the National Council for Special Education on the implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Education Needs Act
- 2005 - Submission to the Task Force on Student Behaviour in second level schools.
- 2003 and 2004 - Submissions to Department of Education and Science and to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education on the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act.
- 2004 - Submission to the Consultation Paper on Establishing a Modern Statutory Framework for Charities
HADD REPRESENTATION OF MEMBER’S INTERESTS
- ADHD Action Group (medical and educational professional group)
- Irish National Council of ADHD Support Groups (INCADDS) which is an umbrella organisation for the ADHD Support Groups active throughout the country.
- The advisory committee for BUA – Building Upon Achievement, at the Institute of Technology in Blanchardstown
- ADHD Europe – European organisation of national support groups
