Gerry Adams
Question:19. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of vacant social worker posts within the Health Service Executive; and the date on which these will be filled. [40712/12]
View answerHealth Services Staff Issues
Questions (19)
Written answers
The HSE has advised that 75 social worker vacancies have been notified to the National Recruitment Service. This data relates to social work vacancies across all care groups, and is not confined to children and family services. The HSE has made considerable progress over recent years in recruiting additional social workers and the commitment in the Ryan Implementation Plan to recruit 260 social workers has been met.
The HSE compiles a monthly census of employment in the public health and social care sector. The figures indicate that the number of WTE social workers employed in the Children and Families Service area of the HSE was 1,300 at the end of July 2012, which is the latest month for which data is available. This represents an increase of 69% WTE since February 2011. The National Employment Monitoring Unit within the HSE has advised that work is ongoing with regard to disaggregating the Children and Families resource base from the HSE as part of the process of establishing the new Child and Family Support Agency next year. Consequently the number of social workers assigned to the Children and Families Service area may change as the mapping/classification of posts into care groups is further refined between now and year end.
Youth Services Provision
Questions (20)
Bernard Durkan
Question:20. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the extent to which she can avail of expert opinion with particular reference to calling on the experience on youth leaders in the community in the preparation of any legislation appertaining to the development of support services for youth in the future; if a particular best practice can be determined to address the challenges faced by young persons whether of a social or health nature; if any particular valuable information can be drawn from experiences from the past with particular reference to addressing such matters of isolation, depression, lack of self-esteem and in general the concerns affecting current and future generations, whether brought about by economic or social circumstances; the extent to which she can put in place back up or support services to identify these issues at an earlier stage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40658/12]
View answerWritten answers
My Department has a range of services in place for young people. Funding of some €56.626m is available from my Department in 2012 to support the provision of youth services and programmes to young people throughout the country through a number of schemes. These schemes include the Youth Service Grant Scheme, the Special Projects for Youth Scheme, the Young People’s Facilities and Services Fund and certain other provisions including the Local Youth Club Grant Scheme, Youth Information Centres, the European Youth in Action Programme (administered by Léargas – the Exchange Bureau) and Gaisce – the President’s Award.
The main objective of my Department, in the provision of support for youth services, is to develop and implement coherent, coordinated and relevant youth policies to support the youth sector in providing effective non-formal education and developmental opportunities for young people through which they can enhance and develop their personal and social skills and competencies. Quality youth services can enhance young people’s social and personal development and their physical, emotional and mental wellbeing. The opportunities youth services provide also equip young people with applicable and transferable skills and experiences which can prove highly-valuable for young people and can help them address the various challenges, including socio and economic challenges that they may face in life.
My Department is developing a new Youth Policy Framework for publication in 2013. The new Youth Policy Framework will seek to ensure that youth work structures, services and supports are optimised to help young people acquire the skills and competences they need, achieve their goals and assist them in accessing education, training, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities. Expert opinion, the views of young people themselves and of those who work with them are highly important to the way the framework is being developed. I have set up an expert reference group, comprising youth practitioners, managers of young people's services, youth leaders, academics, researchers and other experts and they are actively contributing their knowledge and experience to my Department’s work. The outcomes from a symposium on Exploring Outcomes in Youth Work which I hosted in July are also feeding into the Youth Policy Framework. Youth policy developments at European level during Ireland’s Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers in 2013, along with the experience of youth service providers, experts and young people themselves and the findings from a review of the international evidence on outcomes in youth work carried out by the Institute of Education, London on behalf of the Department, will also inform Ireland’s national policy for young people.
Furthermore, I am in the process of appointing a new National Youth Work Advisory Committee (NYWAC) under the terms of the Youth Work Act, 2001. This Advisory Committee which comprises equal representation from the voluntary youth work sector and Government departments and statutory agencies will contribute to the development of the Youth Policy Framework. These experts will advise and assist me in the development of a coherent and responsive youth policy which will direct and support the provision of relevant services and programmes that will meet the needs of young people in the years ahead.
Child Detention Centres
Questions (21)
John McGuinness
Question:21. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the progress made to date in expanding the facilities at Oberstown Children Detention Centre, County Dublin; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40693/12]
View answerWritten answers
As the Deputy may be aware I announced on 2 April 2012, following agreement with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, an investment package of approximately €50 million in capital funding for the project to expand the detention places and facilities on the Oberstown campus. This will involve the delivery within two years of sufficient new facilities at Oberstown to accommodate all children that are subject to detention by the courts, ending the requirement for anyone under 18 years to be sent to St. Patrick’s Institution. In addition to this I announced interim measures which included a pledge that the age range for the detention schools would be extended to include 16 year old boys. This was given effect from 1 May 2012 and I am happy to report that there are no longer any 16 year olds being detained in St. Patrick's Institution.
Work is progressing well on the project to develop the Oberstown campus with a pre-qualification process for contractors for the specialist areas, such as fire safety, security, mechanical and electrical, and for the main contractor near completion. Tenders will issue later this year with a view to having construction commence on site in May 2013. On 13 August 2012 the required planning notice was published in the national media and documentation was made available for consultation by the public. Prior to this notice being published, officials from my Department organised a question and answers meeting with members of the local community and held an open day with staff on the campus to brief them on the project to date. I have been informed that the period for making observations for the planning process has closed and that the final determination is expected to be made shortly.
Departmental Strategy Statements
Questions (22)
Aengus Ó Snodaigh
Question:22. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the date on which the new Children and Young People's Policy Framework will be published. [40706/12]
View answerWritten answers
My 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 5-year period from 2013 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 a number of inputs including:
- The results of a consultation in 2011, which focussed on children and young people, in which almost 67,000 throughout the country participated, and the analysis of which will be published shortly;
- A public consultation of the general public conducted during this Summer. Over 1,000 submissions were received as part of that consultation and my Department is in the process of analysing these submissions;
- 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 which will continue to provide advice to my Department on the Framework up to the end of this year; 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;
My Department is also in the course of meeting with other Government Departments to discuss aspects of the Framework which will impact particularly in their areas of policy responsibility, and this process is expected to be completed by the end of next month. The Framework will be finalised in the coming months, following the analysis of the recent public consultation, and it is expected to be published early in the new year.
Child Protection Issues
Questions (23)
Thomas P. Broughan
Question:23. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the action she will take in response to the findings of the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40494/12]
View answerWritten answers
The findings of the latest seven reviews published by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church were shocking in nature, particularly in the context of the three Religious Congregations reviewed and the scale of alleged sexual abuse, the application of standards and the management of abuse allegations and alleged offenders.
I have had recent discussions with Ian Elliott, CEO of the Safeguarding Board, since the publication of the reports and it is my intention to meet jointly with Mr. Elliott and Mr. Gordon Jeyes, the HSE’s National Director for Children and Family Services, to discuss the findings of the reviews. Both organisations have been working collaboratively at my request to promote improved safeguarding practices across the Church. I acknowledge the advances being made by the National Board in terms of increasing awareness of Church safeguarding practices. I also welcome the willingness of the various Church bodies thus far reviewed to engage with this review process and publish the results. However, the recent review reports shed further light on poor historic practices within the Catholic Church, and while efforts have been made to address poor practice, this is in some cases a very recent development.
My colleague the Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence Alan Shatter TD also recently discussed the publication of the National Board’s reports with the Garda Commissioner and was informed that the Garda Sexual Crime Management Unit is examining those reports in the context of establishing what further action may be necessary on the part of An Garda Síochána in relation to them. Given that much of the reported abuse highlighted in the reviews published into three Religious Congregations took place in schools, the findings will be of particular interest to my colleague the Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairi Quinn TD.
The work of the National Safeguarding Board, together with a national audit which is being conducted by the HSE, is designed to provide a comprehensive national picture of how child protection is being promulgated and practiced by the Church dioceses and Congregations. I recently received the report of the HSE Audit of Catholic Church dioceses, and it is intended that this will be published shortly. The HSE is also conducting a review of safeguarding practices across Religious Congregations.
The Government has committed to, and is putting in place as a priority, a range of legislative provisions which, when taken together, will help to better safeguard children. These include:
(i) the planned introduction of legislation to place the Children First guidance on a statutory footing;
(ii) the introduction of the Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences Against Children and Vulnerable Adults) Act, 2012, which was brought into force on 1 August last by my colleague the Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence, Alan Shatter TD, and which introduced a very important measure designed to deal with the problem of people failing to report abuse;
(iii) the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill, 2012, which is currently progressing through the Houses of the Oireachtas.
In parallel, an extensive reform programme relating to children’s services is ongoing within the HSE and in consultation with my Department, which will lead to the establishment of a dedicated Child and Family Support Agency. I have also in the last week published the Constitutional amendment on children’s rights, which I believe will further heighten our awareness of the need to protect children. Finally, I would encourage all Church authorities, who have not yet been reviewed, to cooperate with the review processes of both the National Board and the HSE. It is only through assessment, publication and analysis that we can fully establish the national picture on the reporting and handling of abuse allegations by these authorities.
HSE Reports
Questions (24)
Pádraig MacLochlainn
Question:24. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the date on which she will receive a copy of the Health Service Executive’s review of Adequacy of Services for Children and Families Report for 2011; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40722/12]
View answerWritten answers
I am advised by the HSE that it expects to submit the Review of Adequacy of Services Report for 2011 to me next month.
Child and Family Support Agency Remit
Questions (25)
Michael Colreavy
Question:25. Deputy Michael Colreavy asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to proceed with the recommendation of the task force on the Child and Family Support Agency to include children and adolescent mental health service within the new agency; the way this will deliver better inter-agency co-operation between HSE, CAMHS and the child welfare and protection services; if she will ensure that this will be addressed in the Child and Family Support Agency Bill; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40721/12]
View answerWritten answers
The final report of the Task Force, which I established to advise on the necessary transition programme to establish a Child and Family Support Agency, made recommendations on a number of key issues. These include recommendations on a range of services, including Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, which, in the opinion of the Task Force, should fall within the remit of the new Agency. The Task Force recommendations are being given detailed consideration in preparing for the establishment of the new Agency, and I will bring proposals to Government in this regard. It is my intention that the Child and Family Support Agency will assume statutory responsibility for services for children and families in early 2013. The necessary legislation is being prepared by my Department as a priority. I share with the view of the Task Force that in order to achieve genuine improvements for children and families, the Agency must have a broader focus than child protection. Prevention, early intervention, family support and therapeutic & care interventions are all key to the provision of integrated multi-disciplinary services for children and families based on identified need.
Health Services Staff Issues
Questions (26)
Martin Ferris
Question:26. Deputy Martin Ferris asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of social workers employed within child services in the Health Service Executive broken down by HSE division; the number of whom who are on sabbatical leave; and the number of those replaced broken down by HSE division. [40717/12]
View answerWritten answers
The HSE compiles a monthly census of employment in the public health and social care sector. The figures indicate that the total number of WTE social workers employed in the Children and Families Service area of the HSE was 1,300 at the end of July 2012, which is the latest month for which data is available. The figures for the Children and Families Service area as broken down by HSE region are as follows:
|
Area |
Number of social workers |
|
Dublin Mid Leinster |
411.7 |
|
Dublin North East |
372.6 |
|
South |
334.3 |
|
West |
181.1 |
The National Employment Monitoring Unit within the HSE has advised that work is ongoing with regard to disaggregating the Children and Families resource base from the HSE as part of the process of establishing the new Child and Family Support Agency next year. Consequently the number of social workers assigned to the Children and Families Service area may change as the mapping/classification of posts into care groups is further refined between now and year end.
The HSE has advised that approval was sought and granted to fill any vacancy which arose as a result of a career break on the basis that it was both financially and employment ceiling neutral. The HSE has advised that the current position with regard to career breaks in two of the HSE regions is as follows:
- HSE Dublin North East Region:- There are thirteen social workers on career breaks and all of these posts have been replaced.
- HSE West:- There are six social workers on career break and four have been replaced to date.
Information regarding the position in the HSE Dublin Mid-Leinster region and the HSE South region has been sought from the HSE. This information will be provided to the Deputy as soon as it becomes available.