In 2006, a National Disability Survey (NDS) was conducted by the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The results were used to plan services, develop policies, and for further research. The 2006 survey is now considered dated, and its usefulness for current policy development is limited. The Department of Children, Disability and Equality (DCDE) have requested that a new survey be collected by the CSO as the Irish Disability Survey (IDS) in 2028.
In 2025 we spoke to people from government departments, people with lived experiences, researchers and disability organisations to find out what content was needed. The list of content gathered was passed on to the IDS Steering Group, led by DCDE in October 2025. At that time, it was accepted it would not be possible to include all proposed content in the IDS 2026 pilot. As a result, the list of content recommendations was ranked by importance by the disability sector and organised by the CSO. The content recommendations detailed here were approved by DCDE and the wider IDS Steering Group in January 2026.
Demographics Module
The introduction to the survey will collect information on who is answering the survey. It will determine if the respondent is answering themselves, if the respondent has someone to help them answer the survey, or if someone is doing the survey for them. Respondents will be asked about:
- sex and gender
- age
- their economic status, which is, for example, whether they are employed, a student, or retired
- their ethnicity
- their marital status
- their sexual orientation
Disability Screening Module
To identify disabled people in the IDS, it is necessary to use a screening module. The screening module is made up of questions and a threshold. The threshold is based on responses given to the questions by survey respondents. Together, the questions and the threshold, set the criteria for counting a person as disabled in the survey.
Well-being and Social Inclusion Module
In the well-being and social inclusion module respondents will be asked about:
- mental and physical health
- quality of life or general well-being
- overall life satisfaction
- loneliness
- social inclusion
- safety within the home and within the community
- support systems
- overall satisfaction with personal relationships
- impact of various peoples’ attitudes and whether they support or hinder the participant
- experiences of discrimination, and on what grounds
- where this discrimination was experienced
- the ability to make autonomous or independent choices about daily life
- whether the respondent identifies as a disabled person
- experience of bullying at school (child questionnaire only)
Housing and Accessibility Module
In the housing and accessibility module respondents will be asked:
- about specific housing adaptations that have been completed in their home
- the suitability of their home, in terms of accessibility
- accessibility outside of the home
Transport Module
The transport module focuses on four types of transport: public transport, private transport, other transport services, and active travel.
Public transport
Public transport services, include public bus (city, intercity, rural), taxi or hackney, light rail (DART, Luas), trains (commuter, intercity), or door-to-door (such as TFI-Anseo). Respondents will be asked:
- frequency of use of each public transport option
- whether they transfer between services
- if they have a travel pass
- overall satisfaction with each service they use
- if unsatisfied with a certain type of public transport, they will be asked what the reason is
For those not using any of the public transport, they will be asked:
- if they would like to use the service and if so, what barriers are stopping them from using the service
Private Transport
Respondents will be asked:
- if they use private transport as a driver or as a passenger
- if they have access to the vehicle when required, and if they avail of a parking permit
For those not using private transport they will be asked:
- if they would like to use private transport and if so, what barriers are stopping them from using private transport
Other Transport Services
Other transport services may include transport offered by disability services, elderly centres, private bus companies, and voluntary organisations. Respondents will be asked:
- use of any other transport service
If not using any other transport they will be asked:
- if they would like to use and if so, what barriers are stopping them from using the service
Active Travel
The Department of Transport defines active travel as ‘travelling with a purpose, using your own energy’ such as walking, cycling, wheeling, and scooting, to make journeys to work, school or the shops.
Respondents will be asked:
- if they use any form of active travel when making day-to-day journeys, including cycling, walking or running, wheeling, or scooting
If not using active travel they will be asked:
- If they would like to use active travel and if so, what barriers are stopping them from using the service
Education Module
Information from both children and adults will be asked relating to a set time period, of 12 months, on:
- participation in formal education such as primary, secondary or third level
- informal education such as life-long learning and work-related training
- barriers within education
- required supports and unmet support needs
- school type
- connectedness or the sense of belonging for children in school
- transition points for young people
For respondents who are not currently in education or have not participated in education recently, they will be asked:
- if they would like to attend and what barriers might stop their participation
Employment Module
The employment module will include a range of questions for both persons in employment, as well as those not working.
For people in employment, they will be asked:
- employment status
- their hours worked and whether they would like to work more or less hours
- general job satisfaction
- barriers within their employment
For people not in employment, they will be asked:
- if they worked previously, the reason for leaving and when they left
- if the situation was right, would they like to work, what barriers are stopping them from working and if they would like full or part-time employment
Assistive Technology Module
In the assistive technology module respondents will be asked about:
- their use of assistive devices or technology
- unmet needs: whether there is assistive devices or technology needed
- barriers which stop respondents from accessing assistive devices and technology
Where multiple assistive devices or technology are used, the respondents will be asked to name their three most important products to support their daily life.
They will be asked further questions on these three selected assistive devices and technology:
- services used to access assistive products or technology, including product selection, product set-up, training, follow-up care, and any other services.
- satisfaction with the assistive product or technology
- how the assistive product was paid for
Care and Support Module
In the care and support module respondents will be asked about:
- difficulties carrying out specific daily tasks, such as preparing a meal, managing finances, or doing housework
- whether they receive help or support with everyday activities and who provides the help or support
- how frequently is help or support provided and is it paid for
If the respondent is not receiving support, they will be asked:
- if they would like to receive help and the barriers stopping them from accessing support
Health Services Module
In the health services module respondents will be asked:
- whether they have accessed any health services in the last 12 months from a list of specific services
- health professionals visited, such as family doctor or GP, occupational therapist, speech and language therapist
- about unmet needs: services they would like to access and what barriers stop them from accessing those services
Respondents will be asked to identify the three most important services which support their daily life. They will then be asked further questions on these selected services:
- how frequently they accessed the service
- if they would like to access the service more frequently
- satisfaction with the service
Social and Civic Activities Module
In the social and civic activities module respondents will be asked:
- if they participated in various social or leisure activities, such as community events, physical activity, or online
- level of satisfaction with their social life and any barriers stopping any desired social participation
- whether the respondent voted in the last election, and if not, were there any barriers that stopped the respondent from voting
Administrative data is information that is collected by other government departments and agencies for their own purposes, which is then used by CSO for statistical purposes.
Some administrative data will be added to the question data collected from respondents such as:
- highest level of education
- school absences over 20 days, and the reason for the reported absence
- income, detail on industry and occupation, and whether the respondent works in the public or private sector
- health-related benefits, such as medical card access or other state benefit
- distance to amenities, for example distance from the respondents home to supermarkets, medical centres, libraries, green spaces, public transport, hospitality and retail venues were suggested as amenities of interest
The recommendations presented in this report reflect the topics to be included in the IDS pilot. The next step is for the CSO to turn these topics into questions. The CSO will work with the Disabled Persons’ Organisation (DPO) Network and individuals with lived experience to design the questions.
These topics detailed in this report may see small changes as the questions are developed. This means that some of the content outlined in the report could potentially change or be left out before the pilot survey is collected. The pilot will begin by the end of 2026 and into the first quarter of 2027.
For more details about the pilot content see the full report.
