I can assure the Deputy that my Department, the HSE and centre management are doing everything that we can to protect the health and welfare of our residents and centre staff as well as that of the wider community at this time. We have been assured by both the HSE and the Office of the Chief Medical Officer that our approach is appropriate.
All accommodation centres are carefully following the guidelines for our centres that have been published by the HSE’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre, which can be found on its website www.hpsc.ie. That guidance exists precisely because it is recognised that congregated settings such as Direct Provision centres present specific challenges in this pandemic.
Shared bedrooms and communal living space are provided in numerous settings. Similar arrangements apply in homeless and disability services and, indeed, in private rented accommodation. The direction from the HSE is that during the COVID crisis non-family members sharing a room in Direct Provision centres are considered to be a household. As such, they should implement social distancing measures from other households, i.e. residents in other rooms, and self-isolate if displaying symptoms or if directed by the HSE. In such instances, we provide facilities for self-isolation both on and off-site.
The established procedure across all centres where a person is suspected of having the virus or is confirmed as having the virus, is that, where advised by Public Health, they are moved to a dedicated offsite self-isolation facility. Supports are available for the duration of their period of isolation until such time as the HSE considers that they can safely return to their centre. My Department has opened four dedicated self-isolation facilities for residents in Dublin, Cork and Limerick, and Dundalk, with a total capacity of 299 rooms. Residents in these facilities have their own bedroom and their own bathroom.
Since the start of the year over 1,550 permanent and temporary Direct Provision bed spaces have been procured, including the dedicated new centres opened in Rosslare Harbour, Cahersiveen and Tullamore.
We have relocated over 600 residents to support social and physical distancing in centres and cocooning measures for the most vulnerable. By doing this, we have ensured that no more than three single people are sharing a room in any of our centres. We intend to continue this policy when the crisis is over.
We have cocooned all residents aged 65 or older and those advised to my Department by the HSE as requiring cocooning on medical grounds.
We are communicating directly with centre managers and residents via regular newsletters, which can also be found on our website www.accommodationcentres.ie. The newsletters have provided practical information on implementing social and physical distancing at this time and promoted shared learning and best practice across our network of centres. Residents have also been made aware of the need for good hand hygiene and coughing/sneezing etiquette. Information and posters have been distributed to all centres and translations of public health information have also been provided.
During this time, centre managers have also been advised to increase the standard and frequency of cleaning throughout the centres, paying particular attention to communal areas. A regular supply of hand sanitiser for centres is in place and this is distributed to centres as required. Other PPE is distributed, as needed, and in line with the HPSC guidelines for its appropriate use in residential settings.
Regarding internet access, I can inform the Deputy that all accommodation centres in my Department are contractually obliged to have Wi-Fi available to residents. My officials have been undertaking a review of access across all centres in recent weeks in order to ensure that signal strength is adequate. Televisions are also provided in all bedrooms. This enables children to access educational programmes such as the RTE Home School Hub, which is an additional support for parents and primary school pupils. Pupils are able to watch, download and engage with curriculum-based content, project work, and fun activities to keep them entertained and learning. This broadcast is a supplement to the ongoing learning being provided by teachers.
Children who reside in Direct Provision accommodation centres are in the care of their parents and guardians. Similar to all other parents, they are responsible for ensuring that their children are engaging with education at this current time. The Department of Education and Skills (DES) and TUSLA Education Support Service (TESS) are supporting the schools and parents at this time. The International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS ) of my Department is liaising with these services to ensure that the most vulnerable children are identified and supported. A communication pathway for schools, parents and centre managers in relation to education issues has been put in place. TESS Education Welfare Officers (EWOs) will identify children and families who may need assistance, liaising with schools and sourcing additional services/resources where necessary. Children and their parents or guardians living in accommodation centres are also supported by a Tusla official and a Department of Education official seconded to my Department to work with IPAS. This ensures that any education or child support issues can be quickly followed up.
My Department has developed a Strategic Framework for Engagement on Child and Family Issues in the context of school closures and social distancing requirements put in place during the COVID-19 crisis. The International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) and Child and Family Welfare Team has developed this framework to support families living in our centres. In preparing the framework, outreach has taken place with key stakeholders including centre managers, TUSLA, the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, the Department of Education and Skills, the Department of Rural and Community Development, the HSE, the Children’s Rights Alliance, One Family and UNHCR. We will continue to work closely with these and other partners. The Framework encompasses three broad themes under which actions will be rolled out: child and family welfare, identifying education requirements, and the general provision of activities for children.
I understand that existing supports for groups under-represented in higher level education and at risk groups in further education and training, will be maintained and re-oriented as part of the response to COVID-19 by the Department of Education and Skills. These groups include learners in Direct Provision settings. A working-group on mitigating educational disadvantage is consulting with stakeholders in the further and higher education sectors on how best to ensure continuity of learning for individuals most at risk of being impacted by the pandemic.
I hope this information provides the Deputy with some reassurance of the steps we are taking at this time to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of all residents and centre staff as a priority.
