Written Answers Nos. 506-518
506. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if he will report on all public and private, official and unofficial, engagements and meetings with a person (details supplied), and with senior executives within the person's media companies here; and the outcome of such meetings. [23040/15]
View answerI can inform the Deputy that there have been no such meetings.
507. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs with regard to the Kerry Diocesan Youth Centre, the way local youth services and officials in his Department are working more collaboratively in the design and development of new youth work systems. [23072/15]
View answerMy Department administers a range of funding schemes and programmes to support the provision of youth services to young people throughout the country including those from disadvantaged communities. The funding schemes support national and local youth work provision to some 380,000 young people and involve approximately 1,400 youth work staff in 477 projects and 40,000 volunteers working in youth work services and communities throughout the country. In 2015, funding of €49.9m has been provided to my Department for these schemes. There has been no reduction in the overall allocation for youth services in 2015. This was an important priority for the voluntary youth organisations that have a key role in the provision of quality youth work services for young people.
Kerry Diocesan Youth Service provides a wide range of services for children, young people and their families throughout County Kerry. Kerry Diocesan Youth Service receives funding from a number of statutory bodies including my Department for these services. My Department provides funding to Kerry Diocesan Youth Service for youth services under the Special Projects for Youth scheme which supports projects which target young people who are disadvantaged including young Travellers and young people who are out of school and at risk of drugs, substance abuse or homelessness. Funding is also provided for a youth information centre in Tralee. In 2015, funding of €429,285 has been allocated to Kerry Diocesan Youth Service for these youth services. I am also aware that my colleague, the Minister for Justice and Equality provides funding to Kerry Diocesan Youth Service, through the Community Programmes Unit of the Irish Youth Justice Service, for the operation of Garda Youth Diversion Projects in the county.
The Deputy will be aware that I launched Kerry Diocesan Youth Service’s Strategic Plan last week, and that I am familiar with the very important work being done by the Service.
Ongoing engagement with the voluntary youth sector is an important priority for my Department in the development of youth policies and in matters to do with the provision of services for young people. Youth Work Ireland and its member services have contributed to the recently completed Value for Money and Policy Review of the youth funding programmes that target disadvantaged young people and to the development of a National Youth Strategy, which will be available shortly.
Last week, officials of my Department met with the President, Chief Executive Officer of Youth Work Ireland and with a group of Youth Work Ireland member services including Kerry Diocesan Youth Service. The meeting discussed matters to do with governance requirements in relation to public funding, the changes that are taking place at both national and local level in the structures that support local youth services, and the proposals for implementing the new youth funding programme as recommended in the Value for Money and Policy Review report.
My Department and Youth Work Ireland has now formalised this meeting arrangement, with a view to monitoring the impact of the changes underway in the structures and systems for the governance of youth funding programmes and addressing the challenges that arise for the voluntary youth services at local level in delivering services for young people.
My Department is committed to working collaboratively with the voluntary youth sector services throughout the country on these issues, and on the implementation of the new National Youth Strategy, to secure improved outcomes for young people.
508. Deputy Pat Deering asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of registered child care facilities in County Carlow, operated privately or by the community; the number of these that have been inspected by State agencies in 2015; were inspected in 2014; and if he will provide details of the inspections. [23224/15]
View answerAs these are service matters, I have asked the Child and Family Agency to respond directly to the Deputy with the most up-to-date information.
509. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if funding assistance will be provided to an organisation (details supplied) in Dublin 13; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23304/15]
View answerMy Department provides approximately €260 million annually to early years and school-age care and education services. This funding is directed towards a number of programmes which aim to improve the accessibility, affordability and quality of early years and school-age care and education.
I understand that this service is participating in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme which provides a free pre-school year to all eligible children before commencing primary school. The funding provided is based on the number of eligible children enrolled for the Programme and the level of service provided. Funding totalling €28,500, due to the service under this Programme for 2014/15, has been paid.
There are a number of other support programmes implemented by my Department which provide targeted funding and in which private early years services can participate if they have eligible children enrolled. Fingal County Childcare Committee will advise services on the eligibility criteria for these programmes.
There is no funding available to my Department outside of these programmes to support early years services and there is no specific funding available to fund early years services that provide programmes through the Irish language.
510. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on the correspondence in respect of the Bethany Bereavement Support Group (details supplied) in Dublin 5 and the cancellation of its funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23338/15]
View answerSince its establishment, Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has been engaged in a comprehensive and much needed programme of reform across our child welfare and protection system. In this regard, Tusla must ensure that it makes the most effective use of its resources in a way that is efficient, equitable proportionate and sustainable.
Tusla's budget is now being directed towards services which are best aligned to those outcomes in Tusla's Corporate Plan, with priority being given to front line services.
The service referred to by the Deputy was in receipt of funding from Tusla but unfortunately, Tusla is not in a position to continue to fund this service.
Tusla very much appreciates the work undertaken by the group in question over the years.
511. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the reason he has not met with the Rape Crisis Network Ireland following postponing a previously arranged meeting in January 2015; his position regarding the ending of funding by Tusla-Child and Family Agency to the Rape Crisis Network Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23358/15]
View answerSexual violence services are being developed by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, as a national specialist service, so as to enable better outcomes for both children and adults who are survivors of sexual violence.
Tusla has appointed a national manager to ensure a single line of accountability for all resources in this important area. Tusla is currently in the process of recruiting eight additional staff for domestic, sexual and gender based violence services.
I requested that Tusla give particular priority to protecting frontline services, and in that context, funding for the 16 Rape Crisis Centres nationwide which provide services directly to rape survivors has been protected in 2015. Almost €4.0m in funding is dedicated to Rape Crisis Centres in 2015, with funding maintained at 2014 levels. The Rape Crisis Network Ireland (RCNI) does not provide services directly to survivors of sexual violence.
The specific funding provided for RCNI by Tusla was to develop and maintain a database of information recorded by workers in Rape Crisis Centres. Tusla had concerns that this database did not capture information from all 16 Rape Crisis Centres as only 11 centres are affiliated with the Network.
In addition, Tusla did not always have timely access to the data collected, which is essential to support the delivery of high quality services across both the domestic violence and sexual violence services sector.
Consequently, Tusla has taken the decision to put in place a comprehensive data system that best meets the current and future data needs of a developing service. In order to plan properly for the future, Tusla needs access to complete and reliable information.
As part of revised governance arrangements, funded sexual violence services will provide information directly to Tusla, creating, for the first time, a comprehensive dataset on all such services funded by the Agency. This information is critically important as Tusla continues to reform services to ensure that we provide the best possible response to survivors of sexual violence.
I was not in a position to meet with the RCNI on 29th January, 2015 due to other Parliamentary commitments in the Seanad. I did meet with representatives of the Rape Crisis Centres on two occasions last March, and constructive discussions were held.
512. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if he will provide, in tabular form, the number of staff in his Department currently on a sabbatical or career break, broken down by zero to six months, six months to 12 months, one year to two years, two years to three years, four to five years and five years or more; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23399/15]
View answerThe career break scheme in the civil service is governed under Circular 4/2013. The scheme provides flexibility to staff and employers which allows staff to apply to take a period of special leave without pay and decisions to grant or approve are based on the organisational needs of individual Departments. There are currently four people availing of career break in my Department, details set out as follows as requested by the Deputy.
|
Currently by duration |
0-6 months |
6-12 months |
1-2 years |
2-3 years |
4-5 years |
5 years |
|
No. of staff |
1 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
513. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if he will provide, in tabular form by year, the total photography costs for his Department since coming into office, inclusive of costs incurred from use of the ministerial allowance; if he will provide the list of occasions for which photographers were booked; the photographers used; breakdown of costs associated with each occasion that a photographer was used; if there is a policy regarding the booking of photographers within his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23415/15]
View answerSince coming to office, I have not used my Ministerial allowance for photography. The only photography costs incurred by my Department were the following:
The Comhairle na nÓg national showcase event at Croke Park on 20th November 2014. This biennial event included a celebration to mark the 25th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and was attended by the Taoiseach. The photographer was booked by Foróige but the cost of €522.75 was paid by my Department.
My Department paid €90.08 to Fennell Photography with regard to the Mother and Baby Homes Commission on 12 February 2015.
514. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if he will provide, in tabular form by year, the use of external public relations firms employed by his Department since coming into office; if he will provide the list of uses of the external public relations firm, and internal Department policy with regard to employing external groups; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23431/15]
View answerSince coming to office no external public relations firms have been employed by my Department.
515. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount spent on external information technology consultants by his Department in each of the years 2010 to 2014 and in 2015 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23447/15]
View answerSince its establishment in 2011 my Department has incurred no costs in respect of IT Consultancy contracts. My Department's IT services are provided through a service level agreement with the Department of Health.
516. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the protocols in place since March 2011 to set standards in parliamentary replies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23495/15]
View answerI would like to assure the Deputy that I and my Department take very seriously the obligations to ensure that all Parliamentary Questions are appropriately responded to. This includes adherence to deadlines set by the Oireachtas for both oral and written Parliamentary Questions.
Parliamentary Questions are circulated to relevant Departmental Units and generally approved at the level of Unit Principal Officer. Ultimately, they make their way via the Department’s Secretary General to myself. While there are no official protocols in place to set standards, guidance is available to staff which addresses issues of timeliness and quality of draft responses. In fulfilling my remit as Minister I aim to ensure that the detail included in responses to Deputies is succinct and pertinent to the issue being discussed. In the context of oral PQs, any Deputy is free to pose additional questions and I endeavour to respond on the day to those additional questions. In cases where I do not possess the details sought, I undertake to send a written response to the Deputy as soon as possible following the PQ session.
Good relationships have been built up with the Questions Office in Leinster House. Where guidance or notifications of changes in practice issue from the Oireachtas to my Department, the staff of the office of the Secretary General circulate same without delay. The Secretary General’s office is also available to advise officials preparing responses to questions, should any issues arise.
517. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if he is satisfied that parliamentary questions are adequately replied to within his Department; the steps he has taken since March 2011 to ensure that parliamentary questions are fully responded to within his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23511/15]
View answerSince commencing in the role of Minister for Children and Youth Affairs in July 2014, I have been satisfied with responses to Parliamentary Questions provided by me in Dáil Éireann. While turnaround time for the preparation of oral and written responses can be short, every effort is made by my Department’s officials to ensure responses are ready in sufficient time. In some cases we are reliant on input from agencies under the Department’s remit, and there is a full understanding in the agencies of the need to provide such input promptly, in order that I can meet my Oireachtas obligations.
I am fully cognisant of the importance of the Parliamentary process and will continue to endeavour to provide up to date and informative responses to all questions.
518. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if his Department has renegotiated external information and technology consultancy contracts and costs since March 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23564/15]
View answerSince its establishment in 2011 my Department has re-negotiated no IT Consultancy contracts. My Department's IT services are provided through a service level agreement with the Department of Health.
