asked the Minister for Health the measures being taken to meet the needs of itinerant children.
Written Answers. - Itinerant Children.
12.
I attach great importance to developing services to meet the needs of travelling children.
In 1979 an additional £170,000 was made available to provide a second day care centre, a hostel, a night shelter and additional residential places in Dublin, where the problems of these children are most acute, and a number of new day care centres around the country.
A committee representative of the statutory and voluntary bodies with responsibility for travelling children in the Dublin area have been meeting regularly under the chairmanship of an officer of my Department. This committee are proving to be a very satisfactory and acceptable means of ensuring a co-ordinated approach to the development of services for these children and their families in the Dublin area. A meeting between representatives of this committee and representatives of the county and city managers will be held shortly to ensure a co-ordinated approach among all statutory agencies and to agree on the priority areas for attention.
My predecessor as Minister for Health invited the National Council for Travelling People to undertake a review of existing policies and services for travellers, including travelling children. The council are going ahead with this review and I will be giving them all the support I can in formulating the most effective future policies and programmes to improve the quality of life of travelling people.