Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 October 2020
184. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Children, Disability, Equality and Integration the distribution of payments under the AIM schemes according to the categories of supports made available. [29172/20]
View answerThe Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), which launched in June 2016, is a model of supports designed to ensure that children with disabilities can access the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme. Its goal is to empower pre-school providers to deliver an inclusive pre-school experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the ECCE programme and reap the benefits of quality early years care and education.
AIM is a child-centred model, involving seven levels of progressive support, moving from the universal to the targeted, based on the needs of the child in the context of the pre-school setting they are attending and therefore requiring no formal diagnosis. AIM is administered by Pobal on behalf of my Department.
Level 1: An Inclusive Culture: This level is the critical foundation for the model. It involves fostering and embedding a strong culture of inclusion, to support all children’s participation in the ECCE Programme. Supports include the national inclusion policy and guidelines for ECCE, the funding of a Level 6 award programme on inclusion (LINC), the establishment of Inclusion Co-Ordinators (INCOs) in each ECCE setting, funding provided for training in inclusion for INCOs and other early learning and care practitioners. Pre-school settings employing an Inclusion Coordinator (who has graduated from the LINC Programme and has agreed to take on the role of INCO in the pre-school setting) receive an increase of €2 per child per week in the rate of ECCE capitation payable to that setting. A once-off provision for the development of Universal Design Guidelines was also included in the 2017 and 2018 budget allocation outlined below.
Level 2: Information for Parents and Providers: This level recognises the requirement of parents and pre-school providers to have clear, consistent and up to date information accessible to them regarding ECCE services and supports and this is supported through the AIM.gov.ie website and information provided by County/City Childcare Committees.
Level 3: A Qualified and Confident Workforce: This level recognises the requirement to continue developing a qualified workforce that can confidently meet the needs of all children participating in the ECCE Programme. Supports include funding of Continuing Professional Development courses such as Hanen, Lámh and Sensory Processing E-Learning (SPEL).
Level 4: Expert Educational Advice and Support: This level addresses the needs of early learning and care practitioners across the country to have timely access to advice and support from experts in early learning and care (and disability in particular) to assist them meet each child’s needs. This service is provided by Early Years Specialists employed by Better Start.
Level 5: Equipment, Appliances and Minor Alterations Capital Grant: This level recognises that some children require specialised equipment, appliances, assistive technology and/or that some early learning and care settings may require minor structural alterations to ensure children with a disability can participate in the ECCE Programme. Supports include grants for equipment and some capital building works for a service. A once-off provision for AIM Inclusive Play packs was also included in the 2017 and 2018 budget allocation outlined below.
Level 6: Therapeutic Intervention : This level provides for access to therapeutic services where they are critical to enable the child fully participate in the ECCE programme. This support is funded from the Department of Health’s vote.
Level 7: Additional Assistance in the Pre-School Room: AIM Level 7 provides additional assistance in the pre-school room where this is critical to ensuring a child’s participation in the ECCE preschool programme. In line with emerging best practice to support the integration and independence of children with a disability, AIM does not fund Special Needs Assistants (SNAs). Rather, it provides financial support to the pre-school provider, which is used either to reduce the adult-to-child ratio in the pre-school room or to buy in additional assistance to the pre-school room. Accordingly, AIM Level 7 assistance is a shared resource for the pre-school setting.
The following table outlines the expenditure on each level of AIM since implementation began in 2016. The table does not include other administrative costs associated with AIM, such as the evaluation of AIM that is currently being commissioned.
|
Level of AIM |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 (YTD) |
|
Level 1 |
€ 623,421 |
€ 2,773,217 |
€ 4,200,014 |
€ 5,134,846 |
€ 2,444,585 |
|
Level 2 |
€ 625,437 |
€ 442,103 |
€ 292,881 |
€ 472,347 |
€ 450,000 |
|
Level 3 |
- |
€ 57,031 |
€ 14,514 |
€ 15,744 |
€ 5,340 |
|
Level 4 |
€ 4,230,822 |
€ 4,417,502 |
€ 7,084,590 |
€ 7,669,000 |
€ 1,917,250 |
|
Level 5 |
€ 120,250 |
€ 3,067,043 |
€ 2,044,191 |
€ 833,316 |
€ 368,722 |
|
Level 6 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Level 7 |
€ 924,773 |
€ 8,634,012 |
€ 16,038,295 |
€ 21,433,000 |
€ 12,444,063 |
