Written Answers Nos. 745-751
745. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if she will address matters raised in correspondence by a person (details supplied); the actions she will take to address the deficiencies in the service involved; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26482/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, this relates to a procurement matter, which is still underway. This process is being undertaken in keeping with the standard approach taken for ferry services subsidised by my Department.
In general terms, as part of a Request for Tender (RFT) for any of the service subsidised by the Department, the minimum acceptable level of service is set out. The RFT does not limit the number of sailings that a potential operator can supply. Prospective operators are encouraged to include additional sailings and services above the stated minimum required, and commonly do so. Additional marks are awarded accordingly when tenders are being evaluated, making the frequency of sailings a key part of the contract.
Any comment on potential changes to the service would be pre-emptive given the fact that the tender process is still underway. My officials have contacted the correspondent to clarify their queries in respect of the approach taken by the Department when tendering for such services.
746. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the details of the funding provided to each local community development committee under the community enhancement programme to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26568/21]
View answerThe Community Enhancement Programme (CEP) was first launched by my Department in 2018. It facilitates a flexible, streamlined and targeted approach to providing funding to those community organisations most in need, while reducing the level of administration involved. The fund is distributed by Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) on the basis of local need.
The CEP received total funding of €13m in 2018 and €5m in 2019. In 2020, CEP funding was a total of €7.2m with €5m of this fund provided for repairs or upgrades to community centres and community buildings as part of the Government's July stimulus package.
Last week, I launched the 2021 CEP with an allocation of €4.5m. The key theme of this year’s programme is supporting groups as they their re-open facilities which were closed due to COVID-19. This funding is to help groups and clubs get back on their feet and may be used to carry out necessary renovations and repairs or to purchase equipment such as tables and chairs, tools and signage, laptops and printers, lawnmowers, canopies, training equipment and so on.
Funds allocated to each Local Community Development Committee since the CEP was first launched is set out in the table below.
|
LCDC |
2018 CEP * |
2019 CEP ** |
2020 CEP |
2021 CEP |
|
Carlow |
€259,285 |
€139,442 |
€174,122 |
€134,206 |
|
Cavan |
€274,141 |
€153,082 |
€177,064 |
€134,757 |
|
Clare |
€336,239 |
€151,037 |
€201,075 |
€139,257 |
|
Cork City |
€472,567 |
€168,875 |
€278,161 |
€153,703 |
|
Cork |
€650,400 |
€189,558 |
€292,014 |
€156,299 |
|
Donegal |
€632,449 |
€188,257 |
€308,885 |
€159,461 |
|
Dublin City |
€1,364,607 |
€251,573 |
€590,865 |
€212,306 |
|
Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown |
€369,788 |
€153,888 |
€216,289 |
€142,108 |
|
Fingal |
€493,131 |
€163,610 |
€261,180 |
€150,521 |
|
Galway City |
€233,676 |
€139,000 |
€164,780 |
€132,455 |
|
Galway County |
€397,778 |
€165,652 |
€223,189 |
€143,401 |
|
Kerry |
€382,630 |
€162,043 |
€217,892 |
€142,409 |
|
Kildare |
€468,672 |
€172,882 |
€247,800 |
€148,013 |
|
Kilkenny |
€289,901 |
€148,099 |
€185,399 |
€136,319 |
|
Laois |
€294,177 |
€145,686 |
€186,492 |
€136,524 |
|
Leitrim |
€189,068 |
€134,459 |
€147,531 |
€129,223 |
|
Limerick |
€542,485 |
€180,429 |
€274,099 |
€152,942 |
|
Longford |
€234,155 |
€140,238 |
€164,405 |
€132,385 |
|
Louth |
€418,627 |
€154,704 |
€234,613 |
€145,542 |
|
Mayo |
€425,542 |
€166,145 |
€232,804 |
€145,203 |
|
Meath |
€393,662 |
€163,835 |
€220,477 |
€142,893 |
|
Monaghan |
€238,172 |
€139,116 |
€165,398 |
€132,571 |
|
Offaly |
€322,142 |
€150,330 |
€197,305 |
€138,550 |
|
Roscommon |
€248,252 |
€142,463 |
€169,295 |
€133,301 |
|
Sligo |
€263,402 |
€144,555 |
€173,472 |
€134,084 |
|
South Dublin |
€750,743 |
€185,106 |
€361,911 |
€169,399 |
|
Tipperary |
€486,017 |
€169,324 |
€256,748 |
€149,690 |
|
Waterford |
€402,777 |
€153,661 |
€229,045 |
€144,499 |
|
Westmeath |
€303,516 |
€154,896 |
€186,741 |
€136,571 |
|
Wexford |
€494,079 |
€169,699 |
€258,745 |
€150,065 |
|
Wicklow |
€367,921 |
€158,359 |
€212,205 |
€141,343 |
|
Total |
€13,000,000 |
€5,000,000 |
€7,210,000 |
€4,500,000 |
*€12.5m CEP & €0.5m Ring-fenced for Mens Sheds
**€4.5m CEP & €0.5m Ring-fenced for Mens & Womens Sheds
747. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the details of the way in which the €1.3 million from the dormant accounts fund allocated to improving inclusive measures in library services was spent by local authority, the initiatives put in place for persons with profound physical and learning needs; the initiatives put in place for persons with visual and hearing impairments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26569/21]
View answerThe public library service has benefitted from Dormant Accounts Funding of €1.3m during the past two years which has supported Library Authorities in their delivery of programmes to support disadvantaged, marginalised and socially excluded communities while at the same time solidifying the library's position as a community hub.
In 2019, Dormant Accounts funding of €650,000 supported the delivery of 87 programmes which provided access to educational supports including STEAM, lifelong learning, social inclusion, and community participation supports. The Dormant Accounts funding was matched by Library Authorities to the value of €83,722 giving a total investment of €733,722. Full details of the initiatives supported are provided in the attached table.
Among the initiatives providing support for people with physical and learning needs was the Cork City LitBit - Steps to Literacy and Inclusion programme which provided storytelling sessions for people with mild to profound intellectual disabilities.
Among the initiatives providing support for those with visual impairments were those delivered in Carlow where daily newspapers were recorded using podcasting equipment and uploaded to the Carlow Libraries website and in Donegal where a programme for visually impaired people was delivered with music and storytelling events.
In 2020, funding of €713,500 was approved for 104 programmes with €650,000 provided from the 2020 Dormant Accounts Action Plan and €63,500 from the Department’s Libraries funding. The funding contained two separate measures – one for programming and another for digital literacy supports.
Under the programming measure, 69 projects were approved Dormant Accounts funding of €454,126 which was match funded by €57,209 from Library Authorities. The programmes were diverse in nature and involved participation by a multiplicity of groups including the deaf and blind communities, and people with disabilities and learning needs. Full details are provided in the attached table.
Under the digital literacy supports element, 34 programmes were approved for Dormant Accounts funding of €180,874, which was match funded by €20,097 from the Library Authorities. This funding supported the delivery of a core element of the national Right to Read programme through the provision of literacy, numeracy and digital skills licences/apps (e.g. Lexia; Touch-Type, Read, Spell; Nessy etc) to assist adults or children with low literacy levels, those with learning difficulties or visually/hearing impaired.
DAF 2020
DAF 2019
748. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the percentage of posts made on each of her Departmental social media accounts and platforms that were exclusively in Irish between 1 May 2020 and 30 April 2021, inclusive; the percentage of posts made on each of her Departmental social media accounts and platforms that featured bilingual translations in Irish and English between 1 May 2020 and 30 April 2021, inclusive; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26587/21]
View answerMy Department operates three accounts on Twitter and one on Facebook.
The table below provides a breakdown of the information requested by the Deputy for the period in question (1 May 2020 - 30 April 2021).
|
|
Departmental Twitter @DeptRCD |
Tidy Towns Twitter @TidyTownsIre |
Tidy Towns Ireland Facebook |
Community Libraries Twitter @Community_Hubs |
|
% posts exclusively in Irish |
1% |
Nil |
Nil |
Nil |
|
% posts with bilingual translations in Irish and English |
6% |
Nil |
Nil |
Nil |
749. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the amount the NGO and charity sector receive in funding from her Department per annum. [26636/21]
View answer750. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if a record will be provided of the annual funding received by the NGO and charity sector from her Department in each of the years 2000 to 2020. [26649/21]
View answer751. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the funding allocated to each NGO and charity in each of the years 2010 to 2020 by her Department. [26662/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 749 to 751, inclusive, together.
My Department delivers a variety of schemes that provide supports for groups in rural and urban communities.
The provisional gross outturn for my Department in 2020 was €359.42 million. Of this, €152.73 million was spent within the rural development programme area and €202.51 million within the community development area. The remaining €4.17 million funded the Charities Regulatory Authority.
Core Funding is provided by the Department of Rural and Community Development for:
The Scheme to Support National Organisations : In the Community and Voluntary Sector the Scheme to Support National Organisations is a key element of my Department's support for the role of the sector in contributing to the development of strong and vibrant civil society and in improving outcomes for those most disadvantaged. Funding has been allocated to 74 national community and voluntary organisations to cover the 36 month period of the scheme.
The Community Services Programme, or CSP : Over 420 community organisations were assisted with funding through the CSP by my Department during 2020, to provide local services through a social enterprise model. The CSP provides an annual co-funding contribution of €19,033 for each full-time equivalent (FTE) position being supported, and, where warranted, provides €32,000 towards the cost of employing a manager. In response to the difficulties being experienced by organisations due to COVID-19, my Department developed a CSP Support Fund during 2020 totalling €4.75m which assisted CSP supported organisations to continue to retain their CSP supported employees on their payroll and also provided assistance for the Employers PRSI contribution, during this crisis period, up to April 2021.
The Department’s Community & Voluntary Supports & Programmes provide a cohesive framework of support for the community and voluntary sector. The programme supports: 22 volunteer centres nationwide, Volunteer Information Services (VISs) in areas not served by a volunteer centre and a number of national volunteer-supporting organisations - Volunteer Ireland, Young Social Innovators, and Boardmatch.
The breakdown of core funding allocated to NGOs for 2020 under these programmes and other NGOs funded are listed in the appendix. It’s not possible, within the timeframe provided, to supply the funding allocations for the full range of years sought by the Deputy.
31 Public Participation Networks (PPNs) are established nationally, funding of up to €75,700 per annum has been allocated by the Department to each PPN. This funding supports the on- going support and development of the network nationally.
Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) payments of €39,168,430 are issued to Local Authorities for onward provision, for programme delivery, to 46 Local Development Companies.
All schemes are open to applications from eligible groups during the application timeframes set for each scheme or programme. Further information on all schemes and funding programmes can be found on gov.ie.
