Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 March 2012
45 Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to introduce a new holistic mechanism involving all the relevant welfare, health, mental health and educational agencies to address the needs of young adults between 15 and 18 years in crisis situations; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15173/12]
View answerMy Department is developing a new strategy for children and young people. It will build on Our Children — Their Lives, Ireland’s first children’s strategy which was published in 2000 and it will cover the period from 2012 to 2017.
The new children and young people's policy framework is being developed in a holistic way to comprehend the continuum of the lifecourse from infancy, through early and middle childhood, to adolescence through to early adulthood, in keeping with my Department's responsibilities for children and young people. It will be the overarching framework under which policy and services for children and young people will be developed and implemented in the State.
The views of a wide range of interests including children themselves will shape the development of the children and young people's policy framework over the next six months. It will be informed by the results of a consultation, in 2011, in which almost 67,000 children and young people throughout the country participated; the advice of the National Children's Advisory Council which comprises representatives of a range of organisations, both statutory and non statutory that work with children and young people, and the views of the National Children's Strategy Implementation Group which includes nominees of Government departments and state agencies that develop policies and deliver services for children and young people.
The Programme for Government commits to fundamentally reforming the delivery of child protection services by removing child welfare and protection from the HSE and creating a dedicated Child Welfare and Protection Agency, reforming the model of service delivery, and improving accountability to the Dáil. The Task Force which I established to advise my Department regarding the necessary transition programme to establish the Agency is proceeding with its work. Under its terms of reference, the Task Force will advise as to appropriate service responsibilities for the Agency from amongst those within the HSE that relate to children and family services or from within the relevant operational responsibilities of my Department or its agencies.
The advices to be provided by the Task Force will inform my consideration of proposals to Government regarding the establishment of the Agency on a statutory basis in early 2013.
Question No. 46 answered with Question No. 34.
