Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 17 Apr 2002

Vol. 552 No. 1

Written Answers. - Child Care Services.

John McGuinness

Question:

531 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if all applications for child care funding now with ADM for approval can be expedited; if he will insist on an early reply to each case in view of the demand; his views on the time-frame involved; and the reasons for the delay in this regard. [11081/02]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

As the Deputy is aware, my Department has responsibility for leading the development of child care services in Ireland. My Department's equal opportunities childcare pro gramme has been allocated EU and Exchequer funding of €437 million through the national development plan to improve child care provision and quality throughout the country. This represents the most significant investment in childcare by any Government in the history of the State and is targeted at services which offer day care facilities and services for pre-school children and school-going children out of school hours.

The Deputy has raised the matter of expediting the approval of applications for funding with Area Development Management Limited, which administers the programme on behalf of my Department. I am aware that while the aim is to process applications within three months, they may take somewhat longer to process in some instances as a result of the volume of applications for funding which are being submitted. I am advised by ADM that since the launch of the programme in July 2000, 2,100 applications have been received. Of these, 1,443 have been fully processed and almost €117 million in funding has been committed under the equal opportunities programme in the form of capital or staffing grants to child care services on the ground, as well as funding to the national voluntary child care organisations. The applications approved to date will support over 30,000 child care places including the creation of over 13,700 new child care places.

I understand from ADM that just over 100 applications have been placed on hold at the request of the applicants and that a final decision will be taken on a further 70 projects within a week or so. Of the 470 active applications still on hand, 253 have been submitted within the last three months. I have been informed by ADM that it anticipates that the recent recruitment of three replacement staff will further expedite the throughput of applications to decision. The Deputy will understand that to address the childcare needs of the county, it is vital that funding is invested in quality child care services. Any childcare service that receives funding under the equal opportunities childcare programme must be of the highest standard and be sustainable. As the Deputy will appreciate, when committing public moneys to projects it is incumbent that we take every reasonable step to ensure that applications for funding comply with the relevant rules and regulations, such as EU regulations on grant aid under the Structural Funds, and that the recommendations made to myself have been properly evaluated under the criteria of the grant schemes.

For the Deputy's information, I will outline the procedure involved in processing an application received under the equal opportunities childcare programme. Once an application is logged and an acknowledgement letter issued by my officials, the application is forwarded to ADM Limited, which acts on behalf of my Department in assessing each application. During the consultation process, the details of the project, including the costings of the work, are confirmed by ADM with the applicant. Site visits may also take place, particularly with large capital projects or applications under the staffing grant scheme. Large capital projects are assessed by an external specialist and assessments are subject to quality assurance procedures. The county childcare committee, established to advance the development of child care at a local level, are also consulted during the assessment stage. Once the appraisal process is complete, the assessment is submitted to the programme appraisal committee which makes a recommendation to me for a final decision.

To give each application a full and fair assessment, it is necessary for applicants to give information relating to their child care services. The assessment of applications is based on material supplied by the applicant under the following criteria: the socio-economic profile of the area relating to the application; the quality of the proposal; the capacity of the applicants to implement the project; the level of integration and co-ordination and the costings or value for money of the proposal. Departmental officials continue to work closely with the management of ADM Limited to identify logjams and to ensure that applications for funding are processed as speedily as possible.

Michael Creed

Question:

532 Mr. Creed asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he has received an application for funding for child care facilities from an organisation (details supplied) in County Cork; if so, if this request meets with the qualifying criteria laid down by his Department; and when a decision will be made on this application. [11103/02]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

As the Deputy is aware, my Department has been assigned the lead role in the development and co-ordination of child care services over the course of the national development plan. In this regard, the equal opportunities childcare programme, which is funded by both the European Union and the Exchequer, provides grant assistance to community based and not for profit organisations and private child care providers who meet the criteria set out in the programme. I have been informed by the childcare directorate of my Department that the group referred to by the Deputy submitted application forms for capital and staffing grants on 5 February. The applications will be subject to the normal assessment and appraisal process, which usually takes about three months, before I make a final decision regarding funding of the project. I am sure the Deputy will understand that at this stage it would be premature of me to comment any further on this particular matter.