Written Answers Nos. 157-62
157. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will provide an update on an application for a youth café by an organisation (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53162/13]
View answerThe Youth Affairs Unit of my Department supports the delivery of a range of youth work programmes and services for all young people, including those from disadvantaged communities, by the voluntary youth sector.
Total funding of €1.75m has been provided to my Department for a new capital funding programme for 2013 to support projects in the youth services, including new Youth Cafés. Pobal is assisting my Department with the application and evaluation process for the Youth Cafés scheme.
Some 95 applications for support under the scheme have been received. The evaluation process has been completed and details of the funding allocations to individual projects for the support of new youth cafés will be announced shortly.
158. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the reason for the process adopted that resulted in Early Childhood Ireland and Border Counties Childcare Network being awarded €900,000 to train 630 people working in the child care sector; if the process adopted an open tendering process and, if not, the reason for same; if the payment structure was agreed-outcome based, and, if not, the payment structure agreed and the timeframe for payment; the way the figure of €900,000 was arrived at; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53173/13]
View answerAs part of my Pre-School Quality Agenda, I will be introducing new qualification requirements for child-care workers. All staff caring for children in a pre-school service will be subject to a minimum qualification requirement of FETAC Level 5, while pre-school leaders delivering the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme will require a Level 6 qualification. These requirements will come into effect from September 2014 for new services, and from September 2015 for existing services.
In light of these timeframes, my Department has sought to work with the child-care sector to accelerate the process for training and upskilling its staff and improving the quality of care delivered to children. It is considered that, to achieve the required qualifications in the limited timescale available, staff in the child-care sector, who are on modest pay, should not have to pay the full cost of undergoing accredited training from their own resources.
For 2014 a learner fund totalling €1.5 million will be made available through the CCCs so that existing staff can choose a suitable training provider to upskill to Level 5 or 6 as applicable.
Early Childhood Ireland (ECI), which is the largest of the voluntary child-care organisations funded by my Department, and the Border Counties Childcare Network (BCCN), which provides quality supports including training in the Border counties area, have been asked as part of their 2013 work plan to offer additional training to the existing child-care workforce in relevant training modules at FETAC Levels 5 and 6. Additional grant funding will be made available to ECI and the BCCN in 2013 to provide for this.
Both ECI and BCCN submitted proposals to my Department outlining their plans to provide the increased level of training support to the child-care sector in line with their roles as voluntary child-care organisations.
242 child-care workers are currently participating in two FETAC Level 5 and ten FETAC Level 6 training modules provided by ECI. A further 278 child-care workers will commence training across fifteen courses (four Level 5 and eleven Level 6), in January 2014, with another 94 commencing training across five courses (one level 5 and four level 6) in February 2014. Some of the training courses are being delivered online, with the remainder being delivered face-to-face.
BCCN has identified approximately 60 child-care practitioners who will avail of their training programme with some of these commencing training as early as next week. The training modules for remaining participants will commence in January 2014.
159. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of children in care who have had more than three care placements in a year for the years 2011, 2012 and to date in 2013. [53223/13]
View answer160. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of children in care under 13 years of age who are currently placed in residential units. [53224/13]
View answer161. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of children in care who have an allocated social worker, broken down on the basis of the care status of the child, that is, if the child is placed in foster care, residential care or special care. [53225/13]
View answer162. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of children currently in the care of the State who have a formal care plan in place. [53226/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 159 to 162, inclusive, together.
The HSE compiles monthly performance reports which include statistics in relation to children in care. These reports are published on the HSE website. The latest figures published show that in September 2013:
- there were 38 (10.6% of children in residential care) children aged 12 or under placed in residential care;
- the total number of children in care who have an allocated social worker is 5,943 (91.9%), of whom 5,467 are in foster care (general/relative), 315 are in residential care, 23 are in special care, 15 are in high support care and 123 are in other care placements;
- the number of children in care who have a written care plan is 5,679.
There were 159 and 172 children who had more than 3 care placements in 2011 and 2012 respectively. In 2010, placements for children in Ireland were substantially more stable than for children in care in England and Wales, as evidenced by comparisons made by the HSE in its Review of Adequacy Report 2011. In 2010, 2.9% of children in care had 3 or more placements, compared to 10.7% and 10.3% of children in care in England and Wales respectively during the same period. As this is an annual metric only reported at year end, the figure for 2013 will not be available till March/April 2014.
