About Montbretia House

Montbretia House is a six-bedroom respite house in Ballywiheen, near Ballyferriter on the Dingle Peninsula. We support adults aged 18 to 64 to take a proper break by the sea, with the care they need available day and night.

What we set out to do

Our mission is to empower and enable people with disabilities to achieve independent and assisted living, with equal participation and inclusion in mainstream society.

In practice, that means the person staying leads the week. Your person-centred plan records when you like to get up and go to bed, what you like to eat, how much help you want with personal care, and what you would like to do. Our team works to that plan, and you can change any part of it at any time.

The house

Six bedrooms, all with en-suite, named after trees that grow in West Kerry: Hazel, Elm, Ash, Beech, Oak and Willow. The Willow Room has its own kitchen and private living room. You choose your room, and you can ask for the same one each time you return.

There is a communal lounge with a smart TV, a dining room for family visits or quiet time, a food pantry and kitchen, a laundry room, and a wheelchair-accessible sensory garden with quiet corners, bird feeders, a pond with goldfish and golden orfe, and raised planters for anyone who likes to grow things.

Never more than six guests stay at a time, so the house stays calm and easy to find your way around.

Where we are

Ballywiheen sits in the heart of Corca Dhuibhne, the Dingle Gaeltacht, with the sea and the hills on the doorstep. That location is part of what we offer: boat trips from Dingle harbour, the Blasket Island eco tour, the hydrotherapy pool at Munster Technological University in Tralee, the local library and book clubs, shopping trips, and coffee mornings in Baile an Fheirtéaraigh.

The team

The Board of Directors is David Pigott and Margaret Sauerland, together with Sinead O’Connell, our staff nurse and Clinical and Compliance Manager, who guide the direction and governance of the centre.

• David Pigott (BA Social Care), Person in Charge — responsible for the day-to-day running of the house, the care team, service planning, and for making sure complaints, concerns and safeguarding matters reach the right person.
• Sinead O’Connell, Staff Nurse and Clinical & Compliance Manager — clinical governance, the initial risk assessment and person-centred plan, referrals to other healthcare professionals, health promotion, and staff training and development.
• Social care workers and care assistants — on duty through the day with a team lead on every shift, and two staff overnight, one of them awake for the full 12 hours.

Standards and registration

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) registers and inspects designated centres for adults with disabilities. Our application to register Montbretia House as a designated centre is in progress. We are preparing the service to meet the Health Act 2007 regulations and the national standards in full, and once registration is granted we will link to our entry and inspection reports from this website.

If you would like to know where the application stands, ring us and ask — we will tell you plainly.

Personal information about guests and staff is handled under the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. You can read how we handle it in our privacy policy.

Who we support

Adults aged 18 to 64, women and men, with a primary disability or dementia, living in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, with a medical assessment of needs. Applications must be made before your 64th birthday.