The Minister of Family, Youth and Social Affairs, Ana Dávila, has announced in Torrejón de Ardoz the implementation of a single appointment to assess children up to 6 years old who need early care, dependency or disability. The system, which is applied at the Regional Centre for Child Coordination and Assessment (CRECOVI), unifies procedures to reduce waiting times.
Torrejón de Ardoz has been the chosen venue by the Community of Madrid to announce a measure that promises to ease the daily lives of many families. Ana Dávila, Minister of Family, Youth and Social Affairs, visited the Los Juncales Early Care Centre of ASTOR this morning, where she presented the single appointment to assess children up to 6 years old with early care needs, dependency or disability.
Until now, families had to go through several separate evaluations, which prolonged waiting times and generated uncertainty. With the new system, a single visit to CRECOVI will be enough for a multidisciplinary team to assess the child and determine the necessary support. "In a single appointment, professionals will be able to estimate the early care, disability and dependency needs of the child," Dávila explained during the event.
Less paperwork, more speed
The bureaucratic simplification does not end with the assessment. Once the child secures a place, they will be able to maintain treatment without previously scheduled periodic reviews. It will be the centre's own staff who conduct follow-ups and decide if the child should continue receiving care, freeing parents from additional management.
The mayor of Torrejón, Alejandro Navarro, thanked the minister for choosing the city for the announcement: "It will help better serve families and reduce bureaucracy and waiting times, at a time when parents are concerned about their children receiving the necessary support."
The Los Juncales centre, managed by the Association of Parents with Children with Intellectual Disabilities of Torrejón (ASTOR), has 155 public treatment places and another 15 for support and follow-up. It is one of the 55 centres that make up the public early care network of the Community of Madrid.
Doubling places in five years
The measure is part of a broader effort to expand coverage. The Community of Madrid has doubled the number of public early care places in recent years, rising from 3,777 in 2021 to the current 7,494. The new Framework Agreement, endowed with over 300 million euros, aims to reach 10,000 places between 2027 and 2031.
In 2025, the centres in the network served 10,197 children and offered 22,189 treatments, reflecting a growing demand. The single appointment seeks to expedite access to these resources, especially in the early years of life, which are crucial for child development.
For families in Torrejón and the rest of the region, the change represents a practical relief. "Before, we had to make separate appointments for each assessment and wait months. Now, in a single day we will know what our child needs," valued a mother attending the Los Juncales centre. Although the minister did not specify a date for implementation, sources from her department confirmed that the system will be launched in the coming months.
The visit concluded with a tour of the facilities, where the minister and the mayor learned firsthand about the daily work of the team. Among those present were also the general director of Plena Inclusión Madrid, Javier Luengo, and the general director of ASTOR, Luis Andrés López.
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