Written Answers Nos. 267 - 281
267. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the full terms and conditions that apply to the child care support schemes announced in budget 2017; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36668/16]
View answerFrom September 2017, a new Affordable Childcare scheme will be introduced which will provide financial support for parents towards the cost of childcare. The new scheme will provide a system from which both universal and targeted subsidies can be provided towards the cost of childcare. This new scheme will replace the existing targeted childcare programmes with a single, streamlined and more user-friendly scheme and is intended to provide “wraparound care for pre-school and school-age children.
The universal element of the Scheme will be available to all families with children between the age of 6 months and 36 months (or until the child qualifies for the free pre-school programme if later than 36 months), who are attending a registered childcare provider.
The targeted element of the scheme will be available to families with children between the age of 6 months and 15 years, with eligibility based on net parental income. For parents with net incomes up to €22,700 per annum, the maximum rate of childcare subsidy will be payable.
The rate of subsidy will taper downwards as net income rises, with no means-tested/income related subsidy payable when net income reaches €47,500. The income thresholds increase where there is more than one child in a family, so a family with two children under 15 years of age would have a maximum net income threshold of €51,300 and a family with three children under 15 years would have a maximum net income threshold of €55,100.
On Friday 28th October 2016 I published a detailed policy paper on the new Affordable Childcare Scheme; this is available on my Department's website and sets out detailed plans for the scheme.
My Department is currently carrying out a public consultation on the detail of the scheme’s design. The Department will use consultation feedback to help refine specific design features as well as to consider options for future development.
268. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget that is used to fund the city and county child care committee, CCCs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36676/16]
View answerEach City/County Childcare Committee (CCC) receives funding from the Department of Children and Youth Affairs to implement its Local Implementation Plan, and they also receive funding to provide additional support to childcare providers working with children with disabilities under the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM). In 2016, the total amount allocated to the CCCs is €11.14m.
Thirty-three City and County Childcare Committees (CCCs) were established in 2001 to advance the provision of childcare facilities in their local areas. They comprise local representatives from the statutory, community and voluntary sectors, childcare providers and parents. There are now 30 CCCs, as Limerick City and Limerick County CCCs have amalgamated, as have Waterford City and Waterford County and North and South Tipperary. Each committee has a distinct legal identity and board of directors. City and County Childcare Committees receive funding from my Department for the operations of the Committee, allowing each one to employ staff and implement actions contained in its strategic plan, which is approved by my Department to reflect national policy objectives. Pobal acts as managing agent on behalf of the Department in relation to the performance of individual CCCs. Pobal appraises and monitors the local planning and implementation of activities and outcomes of each CCC associated with my Department's funding, and supports CCCs individually and collectively.
The CCCs support the delivery of the three national childcare programmes; the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme, the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) Programme and the Training and Employment Childcare (TEC) Programme, and provide additional support to childcare providers working with children with disabilities under AIM. The CCCs provide support and guidance to local service providers and parents in relation to the childcare programmes and support quality in keeping with national frameworks and policy objectives. CCCs are also available to co-ordinate and provide training to providers and offer support to families with regard to Early Years services within their respective catchment areas.
269. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is spent on voluntary organisations; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36677/16]
View answerMy Department provides funding to a number of National Voluntary Childcare Organisations (NVCOs), including Barnardos, National Childhood Network, National Childminding Association of Ireland, St. Nicholas' Montessori Society, Irish Steiner Kindergarten Association and the EECE & Play Early Childhood Ireland. To date the total funding provided to these organisations from the childcare budget amounted to €2.4m.
270. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund inspections; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36678/16]
View answerTusla has responsibility for the inspection of childcare services. Inspection is carried out to monitor compliance with the Child Care (Pre-School) (No 2) Regulations with the aim of ensuring the health, safety and welfare of children enrolled in pre-school services. Funding of €1.1m was provided from the childcare funding subheads of my Department in respect of these; however due to some administrative delays, this funding has not been fully drawn down to date.
The Department of Education and Skills also provides education-focused inspections of childcare providers.
Budget 2017 provided €1 million to enhance the level of inspection of child care services provided by Tusla and the Department of Education and Skills and my Department will be engaging with Tusla to facilitate the recruitment of additional inspectors in 2017.
In addition, Pobal carries out visits to childcare providers to ensure compliance with programme rules. Approximately €1.4m has been provided to Pobal in 2016 in respect of these visits.
271. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to provide part-funded training; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36679/16]
View answer276. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund her Department's fully funded training for child care practitioners; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36684/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 271 and 276 together.
The funding referred to by the Deputy is provided through the 'Learner Fund', and also through the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) which provides supports to enable children with disabilities to participate in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme. The Learner Fund was introduced in 2014 to provide support for existing childcare staff to achieve the minimum level 5 on the National Framework of Qualifications requirement that was to be introduced in the new Child Care Regulations. The Fund was later expanded to support existing pre-school leaders to up-skill to Level 6 on the National Framework of Qualifications, which is now the minimum requirement for pre-school leaders delivering the ECCE programme.
The first two years of funding - 'Learner Fund 1' and 'Learner Fund 2' - have now been closed to new entrants. Funding of €1.5m has been made available in 2016 to continue support to childcare workers pursuing level 6 qualifications in the context of the expansion of the ECCE programme. This is available to childcare staff undertaking training with approved training providers. Applications for this funding are made through the County/City Childcare Committees, who process payment on behalf of my Department. As courses are currently in process, a final amount paid for 2016 is not yet available.
I also intend to extend the Learner Fund to support childcare staff to achieve higher level qualifications in childcare, i.e. Level 7 and Level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications. My Department, in association with the Department of Education and Skills and Pobal, intends to commence work as soon as possible on the development of an approved panel of Level 7 and Level 8 training providers, and a new Learner Fund application process.
In addition, I hope to be in a position to make some funding available to those childcare staff who have already completed higher level courses entirely at their own expense.
In relation to AIM, funding of over €700,000 has been provided to the City/County Childcare Committees to deliver a suite of training modules to service providers to assist in implementing AIM; and, to date, €20,000 has been allocated to Early Childhood Ireland. The purpose of this funding to Early Childhood Ireland is to develop the Train the Trainer programme for the Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Guidelines published under AIM; and to roll out this programme to 60 participants.
272. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund Pobal non-inspection services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36680/16]
View answerPobal acts as an intermediary for programmes funded by my Department and carries out significant work in the fields of programme development and management, project assessment, financial management and accountability, compliance, audit, data capture, monitoring and evaluation. Pobal also plays an active role in supporting recipients of programme funding to manage their services and to implement projects at national and local level.
Services provided by Pobal in relation to the childcare programmes operated by my Department include the administration of payments in respect of the targeted childcare programmes and, since 2016, the administration of payments in respect of the ECCE programme. Pobal also manage capital programmes including the Early Years Capital scheme on behalf of my Department and a number of other schemes as well as acting as management agent for the Department in relation to the performance of County/City Childcare Committees and National Voluntary Childcare Organisations. By end 2016, I anticipate that Pobal will have received funding of approximately €7m in respect of the provision of these services in 2016.
273. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund better start quality development service; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36681/16]
View answerThe Better Start Quality Development Service is a national initiative established by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA) to bring an integrated national approach to developing quality in Early Years Education and Care (ECEC) for children aged from birth to six years in Ireland. It is intended to coordinate and extend the wide-ranging choice of supports and services already provided through City and County Childcare Committees and Voluntary Childcare Organisations. €2.9m has been allocated to this in 2016, and I anticipate that this will be drawn down in its entirety prior to year end.
In addition, my Department has funded 50 Early Years Inclusion Service posts nationwide through the Better Start programme to provide supports to childcare providers implementing the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM). Funding of over €4m has been allocated to this in 2016.
274. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund Garda vetting; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36682/16]
View answer275. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund Garda vetting that is open to the entire child care sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36683/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 274 and 275 together.
The Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016 require a registered pre-school service provider to ensure that each employee is suitable and competent by consideration of the vetting disclosure received from the National Vetting Bureau. This requirement is no different to the requirement contained in the 2006 Pre-School Regulations which the 2016 Regulations replaced. Staff working in early years services have always needed to be vetted prior to being employed. The difference now is that the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012, introduced by the Minister for Justice and Equality and commenced on 29 April this year, provides that early years services (amongst other relevant organisations) cannot employ any person to carry out any work or activity, a necessary and regular part of which consists mainly of the person having access to, or contact with, children, unless the service has received a vetting disclosure from the Bureau in respect of that person.
Two organisations are funded by this Department to process vetting applications on behalf of the early years sector. These organisations are Early Childhood Ireland and Barnardos. The Department understands that both organisations have been under considerable pressure during the last month due to the seasonal increase in applications.
A total of €233,000 is provided by my Department to Barnardos (€133,000 pa) and Early Childhood Ireland (€100,000 pa) to provide Garda Vetting services to childcare providers.
In light of the increased volume of work undertaken by these agencies as a result of the expansion of the ECCE programme, I have agreed to provide some additional funding to these organisations for the purposes of providing Garda Vetting Services to childcare practitioners and I expect this to be drawn down over the coming months.
277. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used to fund Tusla; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36685/16]
View answerI understand the 'childcare budget ' mentioned by the Deputy to refer specifically to the 'Sectoral Programmes For Children And Young People' funding lines of the Departmental Vote given that my Department also provides core funding to Tusla.
Tusla has responsibility for the inspection of childcare services. Inspection is carried out to monitor compliance with the Child Care (Pre-School) (No 2) Regulations with the aim of ensuring the health, safety and welfare of children enrolled in pre-school services. Funding of €1.1m was provided from the childcare funding subheads of my Department in respect of these; however due to some administrative delays, this funding has not been fully drawn down to date.
Budget 2017 provided €1 million to enhance the level of inspection of child care services provided by Tusla and the Department of Education and Skills and my Department will be engaging with Tusla to facilitate the recruitment of additional inspectors in 2017.
278. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is used on private child care services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36687/16]
View answer279. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the total amount of the child care budget for 2016 that is paid to community child care services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36688/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 278 and 279 together.
Community Childcare Services and private childcare services operate a variety of childcare schemes funded by my Department. These include the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) programme, the Community Education and Training Scheme, the After School Childcare Scheme and the Community Employment Childcare Scheme. In addition, over a thousand community and private childcare providers have received funding under the Early Years Capital programme.
As of November 18th, 2016, services designated as Community/Not for Profit have received circa €59.4m in funding from my Department, with additional expenditure projected prior to end 2016. As of November 18th, 2016, private childcare providers have received circa €138.9m in funding from my Department, with additional expenditure projected prior to end 2016.
280. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of vacancies on boards or agencies within his Department's remit that currently exist; the number that have been filled since 8 May 2016; the number of these that were filled through the Public Appointments Service; the timeline for filling remaining vacancies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36644/16]
View answer281. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of vacancies on State boards in his Department; the number filled since he took office; the number filled through the Public Appointments Service; the timelines to fill vacancies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36835/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 280 and 281 together.
The only State body currently under the aegis of the Department of Defence is the Army Pensions Board. The Army Pensions Board is an independent statutory body established under the Army Pensions Act, 1927. The Act specifies that the Board shall consist of a chairman and two ordinary members. The two ordinary members must be qualified medical practitioners of whom one must be an officer of the Army Medical Corps. The chairman and the non military ordinary member are appointed by the Minister for Defence with the concurrence of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. The Army Medical Corps ordinary member is appointed by the Minister for Defence on the recommendation of the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces.
Commandant Zdenek Osecky who was a temporary ordinary member of the Board with effect from 10 September 2015 was permanently appointed on 24 June 2016 by the Minister for Defence on the recommendation of the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces.
No other vacancy has been filled on the Army Pensions Board since 8 May 2016 and no vacancies currently exist on the Army Pensions Board.
