Seán Ó Fearghaíl
Question:6. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if the school completion programme will be continued in 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43978/14]
Other Questions
School Completion Programme
In 2002 the school completion programme was initiated with the intention of supporting vulnerable children at primary and post-primary levels. One of the particular objectives was to ensure their successful participation in the education system and their retention therein. My question seeks to ascertain the Minister’s commitment, as a new Minister in the Department, to continuing the programme in 2015, given that it has been subsumed into Tusla.
The school completion programme aims to retain young people in the formal education system to the completion of senior cycle and generally improve the school attendance, participation and retention of young people at risk of educational disadvantage. The programme is a targeted intervention aimed at school communities identified through the Department of Education and Skills’ delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, action plan for educational inclusion. It provides targeted supports for 36,000 children.
Since 1 January 2014, the Child and Family Agency has had operational responsibility for the school completion programme, including the allocation of funds to local projects. In 2014 an allocation of €24.756 million has been provided for the school completion programme. The agency has approved local projects' school retention plans for the 2014-15 academic year. The first instalment of funding has issued to local projects and further instalments will issue in December 2014 and May 2015.
The Estimate for the agency for 2015 is €635 million, a 4.3% increase on its 2014 allocation. In December, the Department will issue a performance statement under section 45 of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013. This will include my priorities for consideration in the development of the 2015 plan. This business plan will set out the agency's proposed activities, programmes and priorities for 2015 in light of the moneys available.
A review of the school completion programme has commenced. It is being carried out by the ESRI following a procurement process managed by the agency. The programme has been in operation since 2002 and I believe it is timely that a review be carried out. The review is an important initiative to plan for the future development of the programme. It is envisaged that the review will be completed during the 2014-2015 academic year.
The importance of this programme cannot be underestimated, and every public representative in the House sees its value. The programme works in 82 clusters of schools throughout the country, with 229 primary schools and 112 post-primary schools participating. The value of the programme, in so far as it is active, engages families in the community and has an inter-agency approach, cannot be undermined.
In 2011, in the midst of the crisis, the programme had a budget of €30 million. At present its budget is €24.75 million, as the Minister stated. Will he give us a commitment that the funding for the school completion programme will be ring-fenced and will not be raided by Tusla in the way the HSE raided many other dedicated budgets in the past?
Many of the people who work in the Child and Family Agency came from the HSE, where they did sterling work. Tusla is a new agency independent of the HSE. It has many working relationships with it, particularly in services such as psychology. I remind the Deputy of what I stated: that the review is an important initiative to plan for the future development of the programme. The programme is critical for young people at risk of falling out of education. As I stated, everybody knows that people who finish their education do better in terms of employment and income, and it has many other benefits which sometimes help break the inter-generational poverty trap into which people have fallen. My commitment to the programme is absolute and there is no question but that it will continue and that it is a top priority for me. I believe in its importance, as the Deputy outlined.
Tusla will have to submit its corporate plan, a draft of which I have, and I will make my findings known to it very shortly. The Tusla budget has increased this year; therefore, there is absolutely no rationale for a reduction in this particular programme.
Will we see an increase in the school completion budget this year, which is what we need given the increasing number of children in the system, the increasing complexities with which those in the school completion programme must deal, and the fact that the Government has slashed the guidance service available to schools throughout the country? In recent weeks I visited a disadvantaged school and met one guidance counsellor trying to cope with more than 800 students. The availability of a school completion programme in locations such as this is absolutely essential. More than anyone, the Minister realises the importance of preventing problems. He is quite correct to state that if the school completion programme can operate effectively it prevents people from falling into various categories which later cost the State a huge amount to deal with. Will the Minister give us a commitment to ring-fence funding for the school completion programme and increase it in line with Tusla's budgetary increases?
The Deputy spoke about the slashing of services which has occurred in recent years since the Government took office and found not only that the coffers were empty but that there were large bills in every cubbyhole-----
That is redundant old rubbish at this stage.
It is not. The facts do not change just because they are uncomfortable. As an old lady once said to me, the truth is not fragile; it will not break. The truth is that we know why we had to do what we had to do.
The truth is that you are in office, so deal with the problem.
The truth of the matter is that our economy is recovering due to the sacrifices made by the Irish people and the policies pursued by the Government. We now have, for the first time in several years, a budget which has increased. I will ensure the school completion programme is protected. I want to see it enhanced. The review to which I alluded is critical because many times - I do not just blame the previous Government but successive Governments - policies which appeared to be well-intentioned and sought better outcomes transpired not to deliver these. We must continually review what we do to inform ourselves that what we are doing is delivering what we seek.
Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries
Clare Daly
Question:7. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the reason for the delay in the establishment of a commission of investigation into mother and baby homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43924/14]
I am aware that since the question was submitted there has been some movement on this issue, and the Minister met the coalition of mother and baby homes survivors last week. They felt he understood the points they made on the urgency of establishing this commission of inquiry into the homes and the need for the process to be all-inclusive. Will the Minister update the House in this regard?
I thank the Deputy for her question. The Government has undertaken to establish a statutory commission of investigation into matters relating to mother and baby homes in accordance with the motion passed by this House on 11 June. Considerable progress has been achieved since this date, including the publication of the interdepartmental group’s report, the announcement that Judge Yvonne Murphy will chair the commission and an inclusive consultation process with stakeholders.
The establishment of any statutory investigation is a significant undertaking. The scale and sensitivity of the specific concerns relating to mother and baby homes, as evident from the interdepartmental report and submissions received from interested parties, simply demands that I take the necessary time for detailed consideration of these complex matters. The Deputy mentioned earlier that I am the third Minister at the Department since its establishment at the beginning of this Government's term of office. I felt it important that I met all of the groups.
Although the necessity of providing the commission with appropriate terms of reference may be generally accepted, the task of achieving the required precision should not be underestimated. Our collective desire to finalise these arrangements quickly must be balanced against the clear obligation to the mothers and children who were in these institutions to get this process right from the start. Due care and attention at this formative stage should not be interpreted as anything else.
I am confident that we are now approaching the conclusion of this deliberative process. My priority remains the establishment of a commission that can deliver on public expectations in a realistic manner by providing a full account of what happened in these homes. Following discussions with colleagues across Government, the work of developing the terms of reference is now well advanced. In addition, my Department is working with Judge Murphy to advance the operational arrangements and determine the resources required to support the commission’s work, because we are required to be able to cost this when we submit it to Government.
In parallel with this work I am consulting a number of key stakeholders to update them on the emerging issues and seek their further views. As I advised the joint Oireachtas committee last week, at least some of the issues being raised extend beyond the central focus on mother and baby homes as debated in the House. However, I am confident that this inclusive approach will greatly assist the establishment of an effective inquiry which has the support of those most centrally involved.
Following the finalisation of the terms of reference in the coming weeks, it is my intention to bring the matter to Government as soon as possible thereafter.
I hope the terms of reference will be debated here also. It is a big project and must be done right, but there must also be a certain urgency in this regard. There is a certain irony that while the Minister was meeting the survivors last week and the Taoiseach was here stating that all allegations of sexual abuse should be thoroughly investigated, some of the victims of such practices in some of the institutions are being excluded from this scheme. I again stress that this must be survivor-centred. All former residents of all institutions must be included.
No one can be left behind. The vast majority of people were in nine mother and baby homes but the small minority who were outside these cannot be excluded. Again, I emphasise that areas like Westbank must be included. I imagine the Minister is aware that most of the mother and baby homes were certified for more children than mothers. Most of them had 50 or 100 extra children. They were in effect orphanages. The fact that some of the orphanages were not geographically linked to the mother and baby home and were in separate areas like Westbank or St. Philomena's Home does not mean they were not part of the same process or feeding, as part of which women went from mother and baby homes to county homes to orphanages to holding centres and so on. They must be included in the process.
Sorry, Deputy, we are over time. I will let you back in again.
The Deputy is quite right: this is urgent and yet it is a major undertaking. If we get the terms of reference wrong at the outset we will be unable to answer the questions that people want answered. If we end up with a commission that takes ten years to report, it would not be in anyone's interests. We must define the terms of reference in a manner that allows the commission to do its work, get the answers that people want and do so in a timely and cost-effective way. No one in this House wants to see vast sums of money which should be going to people who have suffered being spent on tribunals and the legal profession, with no disrespect to that profession.
I wish to make it clear that I want to be as inclusive as possible in respect of the issues Deputy Daly has raised. The challenge facing me is to find a methodology of doing so in a timely way. Some of the people involved in the home that Deputy Daly referred to are now in their 70s. Certainly, it does not serve them to allow this to go on for ten years or more.
I imagine the Minister will have the full support of the House for an all-inclusive approach. I hope the recognition that in effect a network existed whereby people went from homes into these institutions is taken into account, because we cannot cherry-pick victims. I am mindful of that many of the survivors have prepared a complaint for the United Nations Committee Against Torture. As the Minister said, the age profile is not improving. Their requests should be acceded to as smoothly as possible. Can the Minister indicate whether we will see it this side of the Dáil term? Can we expect to get the terms of reference? The Minister has indicated to survivors that it might take three years. When are we likely to see it being kicked off?
I wish to make a supportive intervention following what Deputy Daly has already recorded. It is not only the Westbank orphanage but the Church of Ireland Magdalen home in Dublin as well. I strongly appeal to the Minister not to exclude any of those Protestant interests who have been campaigning for full inclusivity which, as the Minister is aware, I have argued for consistently.
I thank the Deputies. Again, I confirm that of course there will be a debate in the House on the terms of reference. Equally, I am not in a position to say on the floor of the Dáil today what will be included or excluded because the work is not complete. However, I emphasise that we are examining means and ways, while staying within the spirit and the letter of the motion the Dáil passed last year. At the same time we are trying to find mechanisms and ways to include all those who believe they should be included as well as finding a mechanism to allow the commission to do its work in a timely fashion. The Deputy referred to a period of 36 months. Certainly our goal is that it would report within that period or sooner, if possible, although it is difficult to see how it could do so given the complexities around this and the vast array of institutions involved.
Children in Care
Maureen O'Sullivan
Question:8. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to detail the numbers and the cost to the State due to children being put in foster care because of their mothers being homeless; whether his attention has been drawn to the number of women in crisis pregnancies facing homelessness who will have to put their babies in foster care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43931/14]
My question relates to the numbers of children in foster care because their mothers are homeless. It also relates to those women in crisis pregnancies who are facing homelessness and the fact that they may have to put their babies into foster care.
I thank the Deputy for her question. The role of Tusla is to provide alternative care for a child in cases where there is a need to do so because of concerns in respect of the safety and welfare of the child.
In cases where the social work team has assessed that housing or accommodation is the core issue that needs to be addressed, then they are referred to the local authority, which has statutory responsibility for housing. The social work team will seek to ensure that the needs and welfare of the child are given the highest consideration and may provide a parental supporting role, usually through a family support service. This service can include guidance, counselling or access to supports such as breakfast or homework clubs. However, the financial or economic status of the parent or the issue of homelessness itself are not grounds for seeking a care order through the courts or for placing a child in voluntary care.
Reasons for a child to be received into care are tracked by the agency. However, homelessness of the parent or parents is not a characteristic which is captured, as it would not be a sufficient reason for a child to be in care. For that reason, the agency is not in a position to provide such data.
The agency reported that for the full year of 2012 there were 2,070 children taken into care. In total 1,115, that is 53%, were admitted to care due to child welfare concerns; 593, or approximately 28%, were admitted to care due to neglect; 173,or 8.4%, were admitted to care due to physical abuse; 154, or 7.4%, were admitted to care due to emotional abuse; and 35, or 1.7%, were admitted to care due to sexual abuse.
Dublin City Council has launched a homeless prevention programme and public awareness campaign around families and others relating to their tenant rights. This initiative, which involves the four local authorities and Threshold, aims to support families where they are at risk of homelessness. A helpline service has already dealt with over 2,000 calls and has helped families at risk to protect over 200 tenancies.
The Minister has given me the theory but the reality is different. Part of the reality is that there is a serious housing crisis, particularly in Dublin, and that the local authorities do not have the housing that is needed.
My question came from the fact that I am involved with a counselling organisation that counsels women in crisis pregnancies. Some of the women whom we are counselling are homeless at the moment. When their babies are born they will continue in homelessness. That is what they are facing. They will have to look for foster care for their babies.
This work, in turn, put me in touch with an organisation that provides housing for women in crisis pregnancies. It has three bedrooms but a waiting list of 29 women who are pregnant. The majority are Irish but some are foreign national women who cannot go back to their country of origin. We know of 29 people who are pregnant and about to give birth in the coming weeks and months. They do not have anywhere to live apart from this one house with three bedrooms provided by one organisation. That is the reality.
The information the Deputy has given me is something that we will further investigate. I would be astonished in this day and age that any woman would have to give up a baby simply because she has no accommodation. There are several agencies in the country which will provide accommodation. Let us go backward in time. We have discussed what happened in the past, when women had to give up their children because of societal, parental or institutional pressure. We are discussing it now because of a homeless situation.
I met a lady yesterday - obviously, I will not mention her name. She told me a harrowing story of how she went to court to claim her baby but was asked by the judge whether she had any place to provide for the baby. That dates back several decades but the point is that it is not a tolerable situation. If Deputy O'Sullivan has a list of names of individuals who find themselves in this situation then I would be happy to accept it and find out what arrangements are being put in place. It may not necessarily be my Department's remit, but I will certainly make representations to the appropriate Departments to have this resolved.
I thank the Minister for his reply.
I will certainly forward the information to him. We have talked about other programmes which were very much in favour of early childhood care and school completion, but even before that we must provide these women and their babies with a good start. I will send on the information, because that is the reality.
I used the word "astonished". Equally, I would be horrified if that were the case.
Value for Money Reviews
Maureen O'Sullivan
Question:9. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs when the value for money and policy review of youth schemes, including the young people's facilities and services fund, will be published; if this will be followed by consultations with stakeholders; and if he will provide a date for a meeting of the national assessment committee. [43932/14]
A value for money and policy review was carried out on the young people's facilities and services fund. Those involved with young people are wondering when it will be published and if there will be consultation with stakeholders. Allied with that is the national assessment committee, which has not met in quite some time. Again, those involved with young people are anxious to have that monitoring committee meet again.
The value for money and policy review of the youth programmes that target young people at risk of disadvantage, including the young people's facilities and services fund, has been finalised. The review recommends changes to youth funding programmes to ensure evidence-based, effective, value-for-money services that secure the best outcomes for young people, particularly vulnerable young people. I intend that all stakeholders providing services for young people will have the opportunity to discuss the review's findings and recommendations. My Department has developed a detailed consultation plan, which will be launched before Christmas. I have met with leaders in the area to assure them that they will have a meaningful consultation on the implementation of the findings of the report.
Consultation with stakeholders will take place in the context of the national youth strategy being developed by my Department. The strategy will have a particular focus on young people who are vulnerable and need additional supports. The intention is to work collaboratively with youth service interests, including national youth organisations and education and training board youth officers, to see how the review's recommendations will be implemented over the next two years in the context of the national youth strategy. The National Youth Council of Ireland, the City of Dublin Youth Service Board and the community and voluntary representatives who have served on the national assessment committee will have an important role in this process.
I have a particular interest in the young people's facilities and services fund. When it was originally established in the late 1990s, I chaired the development group for the north inner city, and I was very aware of the extent of the consultation that went on at that stage. The fund has done great work and targets areas in which young people are most at risk from drugs. While every community, town and village is at risk from drugs, there are some areas that are particularly vulnerable. I represent some of them. The fund addressed these issues, but it has gone off the boil recently. It is important to bring an impetus back to this. Just this week, two young people died in the inner city from a new drug called ice. That is the reality of what is happening on the ground. It is important to keep an eye on whom the fund targets. While it is good that the review will come before Christmas and that the consultation process will begin quickly, I ask that the Minister listen to the front-line workers who are working with young people in those areas.
The Department is absolutely committed to the consultation process. The Deputy mentioned the monitoring group, and we will certainly look to see when that will meet again. I inform the House that arrangements are being made by my Department to publish the value-for-money review in the coming weeks and to convene a meeting of the national assessment committee promptly thereafter.
I hope the key word is "promptly". I asked a question of the Deputy's predecessor about when the national assessment committee would be meeting. It was almost as if it was not considered necessary because the funding had been set up. However, the committee keeps an eye on what the report is doing, which is ensuring that the funding, services and facilities go to those who are most at risk. It is also ensuring that there is value for money and an evidence-based approach. It is very important that the national assessment committee, to which the Minister is committed, meets more regularly. It is quite some time since it has met. In the meantime, services and facilities have continued to be provided, and the committee wants to meet to ensure they are going to the most at-risk areas.
I thank the Deputy for her comments. I agree that the national assessment committee should meet on a regular basis. I have made the point in reply to earlier questions that we are very concerned across Government, as I am in my own Department, that our policies are evidence-based and that the money we spend delivers the outcomes we desire - that is, better outcomes for children. There have been various reports across different agencies which suggest that things could be done differently and more effectively, and we must address those issues. Some of them may be real and some imagined, but unless we have hard, objective evidence we cannot make those calls. In fairness to everyone working in the sector, they all want to improve outcomes for young people. As I said in reply to the first question, I express my gratitude and that of the Government and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs for the fantastic volunteerism in the sector.
Foster Care Provision
Robert Troy
Question:10. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs how he proposes to address the crisis in the number of persons offering themselves for foster parenting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43974/14]
How does the Minister propose to address the crisis in the number of people offering themselves for foster parenting, particularly in the north Dublin city area?
Fostering is one of the main components of care for children in care, and it is a very successful one. When we compare ourselves internationally, we can see that we have one of the highest rates of family-based care and that other countries are striving towards what we have already achieved. The idea of many children being in institutions is now really a thing of the past, and rightly so. Overall, the foster care role is well funded and the take-up of the fostering service provided through the Child and Family Agency is high. Of children in care, 93% are being cared for in a foster care setting by around 4,250 foster carers.
While I do not consider that there is a crisis, in light of the success we are having in delivering foster care, I note that it can sometimes be a challenge to place children within their local communities, which we want to do. The Deputy has mentioned a particular area. That said, there is an ongoing need to recruit, as foster carers may come off the register for various reasons, including age, health or simply the demands of their own family lives. A fostering recruitment campaign for Dublin north city was launched by the Minister of State with responsibility for equality, new communities and culture only last week. I understand it went very well and that the public response has been positive.
On foot of the robust process of training and assessment that potential foster carers must complete, we only bring onto the foster care panel those who are suitable and dedicated carers. Children and adolescents in care do not form a uniform group. Some can have moderate or severe disabilities and, perhaps, anger and trust issues. They may have different language, cultural and dietary needs. They may be in the company of siblings. As the Deputy can imagine, we require a complex mix of skills, capabilities and experience on the foster carer panel in order to deliver the best service possible. The agency and organisations such as the Irish Foster Care Association keep fostering in the public eye with general and targeted campaigns. I had the pleasure of opening the association's conference at the weekend.
While I do not agree that there is a crisis, we can never take for granted that there are enough foster carers available to support children and their families at a very vulnerable time in their lives. We need to continue to recruit suitable and loving foster carers and to publicise the fact that fostering delivers great benefits for children, their families and their communities. Such is the bond that grows between foster parents and their children that a huge number of children continue to be supported emotionally and financially by their foster parents after the age of 18.
I acknowledge that the care provided through fostering is at a high level, which is only right and proper. However, one third of the children put forward for fostering in the north Dublin city area to date in 2014 have had to be housed outside their area. That means they were removed from their own communities, taken out of the schools they were attending and taken away from friends. That is not right or proper. While the Minister might not have the details about the specific area now, I would welcome it if he would come back to me with information on how we can attract extra foster parents in the north Dublin city area.
I am happy to do that.
Written Answers follow Adjournment.