Willie O'Dea
Question:9. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she has any plans to introduce a ban on parents slapping their children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7338/13]
View answerCorporal Punishment
Questions (9)
Written answers
Section 246 of the Children Act 2001 provides very clear legal deterrents to the use of excessive physical discipline within the home setting or otherwise, as follows:
Section 246.—(1 ) ‘It shall be an offence for any person who has the custody, charge or care of a child wilfully to assault, ill-treat, neglect, abandon or expose the child, or cause or procure or allow the child to be assaulted, ill-treated, neglected, abandoned or exposed, in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to the child's health or seriously to affect his or her well-being.’
The Children Act of 2001 also specifically prohibits physical punishment of children in all other settings such as schools, crèches, detention, public care settings etc
In relation to corporal punishment within the home, a limited defence of ‘reasonable chastisement’ exists in common law, but successful prosecutions have also been taken by the State under section 246 where parents are deemed to have used excessive or unreasonable force in disciplining children.
There is a balance to be found between supporting parents in effective parenting, in particular, in use of non-violent forms of discipline, and the use of criminal law to impose criminal sanctions on parents who do not adhere to best practice in parenting. It is important to emphasise the considerable progress made in recent years in encouraging parents to use alternative non violent forms of discipline in the family setting.
Recent official independent research undertaken by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs indicates that the practice of corporal punishment in the home setting is now relatively rare in Ireland. This research indicates that the vast majority of Irish parents never use corporal or physical punishment as a means of disciplining children and opt instead for alternative means of discipline. I have asked my officials to forward a copy of this research to the Deputies office for his information.
EU Presidency Priorities
Questions (10)
Timmy Dooley
Question:10. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the issues she is prioritising during Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the European Union; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7322/13]
View answerWritten answers
My overall aim for the Ireland’s Presidency of the Youth Council is to build on what has been achieved for and with young people under recent Presidencies, to ensure that the outcomes of the Irish Presidency result in a sustainable legacy for youth policy and services and most importantly that these make a positive impact on Europe’s young people.
The Presidency Trio of Ireland, Lithuania and Greece have agreed on ‘Social Inclusion’ as the overall theme for the Youth Council over 2013/2014. The importance of the theme is underscored in recent policy documents such as EU Youth Strategy - Investing and Empowering Youth 2010-2018; Europe 2020; and in the recent EU Youth Report.
Building on a broad understanding of social inclusion as accommodating all young people and the range of issues they face, my priorities for the Youth Council Presidency are:
to promote understanding of the contribution of quality youth work to young peoples development , wellbeing and social inclusion; and to explore the potential of youth policy ( as expressed through youth work and youth activities) to address the Goals of Europe 2020, particularly youth employment. I will bring forward proposals for Council Conclusions on these two priorities for adoption by the Council of Youth Ministers in May.
These policy priorities are being advanced through the work of the Youth Working Party made up of officials of Member States. They will be also informed by the outcomes of the structured dialogue process between young people, youth representatives and policy makers following the EU Youth Conference to be held in Dublin 11th to 13th March, 2013.
The EU Youth Conference is the flagship event in the Irish Presidency Youth programme. The conference is the culmination of the EU wide consultation with young people on the theme of social inclusion. It is estimated that over 12,000 young people will participate in national dialogues, at present underway, in member states. Following the national dialogues some 150 youth representatives will then participate in the EU Conference in Dublin next month, along with some 100 policy makers from member states and representatives of the EU Commission.
Following the EU Youth Conference, Ireland will host an informal meeting of Directors’ General of Youth from each member state. Officials of the European Commission will attend and contribute to this informal youth policy debate and exchange of good practices relating to Ireland’s priorities.
On 20th and 21st of June, I will host an expert round table event in Dublin that will explore further the role of youth policy in advancing employment for young people. The intention is to bring a new focus to the ways in which youth policy and the youth sector can bring new synergies and additional elements to achieve the goals of Europe 2020, in particular, in relation to youth employment.
Bullying of Children
Questions (11)
John McGuinness
Question:11. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the role her Department will play in the recently launched Action Plan on Bullying; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7335/13]
View answerWritten answers
The scale of bullying in Ireland remains a matter of grave concern. This is borne out by recent research findings:
- My Department’s 'Growing Up in Ireland' study has found how over 24% of 9 to 17 year olds have reported been bullied.
- The Anti-Bullying Centre in Trinity College has found how one in four girls and one in six boys in Ireland have been involved in cyber-bullying either as a victim, bully or both.
- Research commissioned by the GLEN (Gay & Lesbian Equality Network) & BeLonG To on the experiences of young LGBT people in Irish schools has found that 58% reported the existence of homophobic bullying in their schools.
Bullying can have a terrible and corrosive impact on our children and young people, on their confidence, learning outcomes, self-esteem and mental health. The affects of bullying can last for years. Sadly, in some case they can result in the loss of young lives. In recent times we have learned of a number of very tragic cases where bullying was involved. On behalf of the Government and on my own behalf I wish extend my sympathies to the families and friends of the young people who have died.
As Minister for Children & Youth Affairs I am committed to working with colleagues in Government to ensure that integrated policy responses to combat bullying are high on our agenda. The new Children First guidelines which I published last year now, for the first time, recognises the problem of bullying.
Last month Minister Quinn and I launched the Action Plan on Bullying. This is the first plan of its kind and aims to address the serious impact of bullying on our children and young people. The publication of this plan is an important step in the Government’s absolute commitment to working with a broad base of interests to protect children and ensuring a safer childhood.
The Action Plan recognises that as bullying is no longer limited to classrooms, we have to have a broader approach also. That means making sure that wherever young people are, they’re protected by safety guidelines. It means making sure that wherever young people are, they are supported by an anti-bullying ethos and an Anti Bullying Framework.
In line with the Action Plan, my Department will lead the development of Anti Bullying Framework to support young people, parents, schools, teachers and youth worker.
The Anti Bullying Framework will be development and prioritised within the context of the new whole-of-government Children and Young People’s Policy Framework which my Department is leading on and which is due be published later this year.
My Department will work with the Department of Education and Skills in the development of an anti-bullying website, as recommended in the plan, to provide a single point of access to practical advice for parents, children and teachers to support them in tackling and reporting bullying behaviours, including cyberbullying.
In recognising the lead role of schools in tackling bullying and their need for support and guidance, The National Education Welfare Board, which now comes under my Department’s remit, has issued guidelines requiring each school must have policies to prevent or address bullying and schools must make clear in their code of behaviour that bullying is unacceptable. Compliance by schools with this NEWB requirement is now inspected by Department of Education Inspectorate during Whole School Evaluations.
In conclusion, my Department is committed to the fight against bullying and we will work with other Departments, childcare services, education welfare services and the youth sector to raise awareness about bullying, its impact on children and young people and the measures to be taken to tackle prejudice, combat bullying and promote a safer environment for our young people.
Youth Unemployment Measures
Questions (12)
Seamus Kirk
Question:12. Deputy Seamus Kirk asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the measures she is taking to support youth employment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7334/13]
View answerWritten answers
The Government is committed to creating the environment for a strong economic recovery to support employment creation and jobs growth. Youth unemployment is a particular concern because of the difficulties it poses for young people themselves, their personal development and for social inclusion. The Government has a range of measures in place to tackle youth unemployment and these include initiatives in respect of education, training, job search assistance/work experience and support for job creation.
As Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, I have sought to highlight and promote the potential of youth work as part of the continuum of youth employment supports and I welcome the growing recognition in Ireland and across Europe of the potential of youth work services to enhance employability of young people.
Each year over 380,000 young people participate in youth work services throughout Ireland. Youth Work and non-formal learning, in its many programmes and activities can offer young people opportunities, including valuable volunteering opportunities, which can aide young people in acquiring new competences and skills and in turn enhance employability and job-readiness.
This is particularly relevant in the case of young people who are otherwise marginalised from traditional services, such as those who are not in education, employment or training, the so called NEETs cohort. Existing youth work services already provide a significant level of engagement with this cohort and have the potential to provide a value-added not readily available from other activation programmes, through provision of outreach, intervention and bridging programmes focused on developing skill-sets and job-readiness.
Already a number of Irish youth services have begun piloting innovative community-based programmes focussed on supporting youth employment. My Department and I will continue to engage with the newly-established National Youth Work Advisory Committee and other Government Departments to explore how such initiative can be supported as part of the Government’s overall activation programme. Minister Bruton is currently finalising the 2013 Action Plan for Jobs on behalf of the Government and in that context my Department is working closely with the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation on the inclusion in the plan of appropriate actions relating to the contribution of the youth sector in supporting youth employment, including through a greater focus on promoting and supporting volunteering opportunities.
In line with the Ireland’s overall EU Presidency priority theme of ‘Jobs, Stability & Growth’, I have sought to prioritise youth employment during my Presidency of the EU Council of Youth Ministers.
The Europe 2020 growth agenda emphasises the need to “develop youth work as a resource to support youth employability” while the current EU Strategy for Youth (2009) contains a key objective to “develop youth work as a resource to support youth employability”.
With this is mind, Ireland’s Youth Presidency Programme includes a priority focus on maximising the potential of youth policy in addressing the goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy, in particular with respect to supporting youth employability. Work is underway on draft council conclusions which I hope will be agreed at the EU Council of Youth Ministers meeting in Brussels in May which I will chair. I also plan, as part of the Presidency programme, to host an expert round table event on quality youth work and its contribution to Europe 2020 and youth employment in June of this year.
Health Services Staff Remuneration
Questions (13)
Éamon Ó Cuív
Question:13. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of social workers for children now in place; her target for the end of 2013; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7350/13]
View answerWritten answers
Figures supplied by the HSE, from its census of employment in the public health and social care sector, indicate that the number of whole-time equivalent (WTE) social workers employed in the Children and Families service area was 1438 at the end of December 2012, which is the latest date for which related figures are available. The census numbers reflect the outcome of a process of reclassification of social workers within the HSE into various care groups, including children and families as part of the process of establishing the Child and Family Support Agency.
HSE Children and Family Services will continue to apply discretion to the filling of social work vacancies in 2013, taking account of identified need and subject to services being delivered within available resources.
Adoption Records Provision
Questions (14)
Clare Daly
Question:14. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 90 of 15 May 2012 if she will report on the progress of the Health Service Executive's search for birth related and other documents in the possession of the HSE and previous organisations now within the HSE organisation relating to persons identifying as Adopted and for whom no adoption record exists. [7274/13]
View answerWritten answers
I am informed by the Adoption Authority of Ireland that, in mid 2010, they conducted a review of information it retained of contact received from persons seeking to trace their natural parents where no adoption records existed. This exercise indicated that 99 people who had identified themselves to the Board as adopted, did not have a corresponding adoption file. Around 45 of these cases related to people born after 1953 and the balance related to persons born pre-1953. Subsequently a further 20 applications from persons seeking access to the National Contact Preference Register (NCPR) administered by the AAI have fallen into this category. In many cases they are aware that the details contained in the Register of Births are false and that their birth was registered incorrectly.
The HSE has also had contact from a small number of people in similar circumstances where no adoption record exists The HSE have referred those people to the AAI to encompass them in the review, add their details to the NCPR and provide assistance with information and tracing.
The AAI and HSE have attempted to identify and quantify the numbers of people whose registrations fall into these categories but further efforts are required to move beyond that and endeavour to trace birth parents, children and or siblings who are affected by this issue. Furthermore currently records related to such registrations, that may exist, are held by various agencies, some by the HSE and AAI, but also possibly by private adoption agencies, maternity hospitals, private individuals and other sources.
This is a very complex and difficult issue and I have recently met with a group of people who have found themselves in these circumstances. I have informed them of the actions I intend to take to address their current situation including asking the AAI and HSE to identify the legislative options for examining all records in existence or any other administrative assistance or including provisions in this regard in the forthcoming Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill.
When the former Adoption Board launched the National Adoption Contact Preference Register in 2005, provision was made for persons, who were party to the illegal registration of a child, to register an interest in the Register for possible future contact with another party sometime in the future. Fundamental to the success of the NCPR is that any persons with information in this regard contact the Information and Tracing Unit of the AAI.
Child Care Services Provision
Questions (15)
Seán Fleming
Question:15. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she intends to develop a Scandinavian model of childcare in this country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7324/13]
View answerWritten answers
As part of Budget 2013 I, together with my colleague, the Minister for Social Protection, was pleased to announce a new After-School Childcare initiative which will be targeted at low-income families and supporting parents availing of employment opportunities.
The initiative is expected to receive full year funding of €14 million to provide over 6,000 quality after-school places for children attending primary school in order to support parents to take up employment. Lack of access to affordable, quality childcare is a significant barrier to many low income and disadvantaged families seeking to avail of work opportunities.
This initiative will provide an important support measure to enable parents to avail of job opportunities. This is in line with the Government's overall strategy to support parents of low income families to take up employment and demonstrates how Departments are working together to deliver the Government's agenda on promoting employment and supporting children's development.
The After-School Childcare Scheme will further augment my Department's programme of childcare supports for low income families. These include the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and the Childcare Education and Training Support (CETS) programmes, both of which provide subsidised childcare for low income parents, including qualifying parents who are on approved VEC and FÁS education and training courses. In 2013, my Department expects to spend over €70 million on the CCS and CETS programmes, supporting over 30,000 childcare places.
My Department also implements the universal free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, under which all children have equal access to free pre-school education in the year before commencing primary school. Some 66,000 children are currently availing of the ECCE programme which is expected to cost in the region of €175 million this year.
Future developments in the area of early childhood care and education, will be considered by my Department in the context of its National Early Years Strategy. The Strategy is currently being developed within my Department and is expected to be completed later this year. It is my intention that it will cover a range of issues affecting children in their first years of life as well as identifying best practice in other jurisdictions. Such international practices can inform our thinking in the policy choices we face in further developing early education and care for children, while recognising that specific solutions must be tailored to our current needs and priorities in this country.
Early Child Care Education
Questions (16)
Charlie McConalogue
Question:16. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans for a second free pre-school year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7331/13]
View answerWritten answers
The free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme was introduced in January 2010 and provides a free pre-school year to all eligible children in the year before commencing primary school. In line with the Programme for Government, my Department has made a significant commitment to maintaining this universal programme and some 66,000 children are availing of it at this time. The programme is expected to cost in the region of €175 million this year.
I am aware of the need to further develop the early childhood care and education sector. However, any development that involves further pre-school provision would require considerable additional funding. I am also very conscious that work is continuing on improvement of quality within the pre-school year. All of the available evidence indicates that the quality of the provision is key to good outcomes for children. In particular, I would like to see further progress in workforce development within the sector given the demands which expansion would place on the current pool of trained staff.
Future developments relating to early years care and education are being considered in the context of the National Early Years Strategy for children aged from birth to six years, which is being developed by my Department and expected to be completed later this year.