Written Answers Nos. 1-60
45. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the timeline and next steps for the excavation of human remains at the burial site at Tuam, County Galway, further to the appointment of the director of authorised intervention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25917/23]
View answerLast week I announced the appointment of Mr Daniel Mac Sweeney as Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam. Mr Mac Sweeney will head up the independent Office that has been established under the Institutional Burials Act 2022 to oversee the important and highly sensitive work of ensuring the children’s remains at the site of the former Mother and Baby Institution in Tuam are recovered and re-interred in a respectful and appropriate way.
Mr Mac Sweeney brings extensive experience and expertise to the role, having been involved in humanitarian programmes across the world with the International Committee of the Red Cross. This work has included identification programmes involving the use of DNA. His skills and expertise will, therefore, be invaluable in leading the intervention in Tuam.
It is important that the newly appointed independent Director has time to properly assess the situation in Tuam and develop a plan before setting out timelines for the excavation. Appropriately qualified experts from a range of disciplines will need to be engaged to undertake the forensic excavation, recovery and post-recovery analysis processes. I understand that engineering works and the construction of onsite facilities will also be required in advance of excavation of the site.
Work is ongoing to establish the core staffing and administrative structures, which will support Mr Mac Sweeney in his work. A key priority for Mr Mac Sweeney in the first instance will be to engage with relatives, survivors and former residents of the Tuam institution in relation to the intervention there.
This has been a priority of mine since I became Minister. It has taken considerable time to bring us to this position, but I am pleased that we are now finally able to move forward.
46. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to provide an update on the programme for Government commitment to establish an agency, Childcare Ireland, to assist in the expansion of high-quality childcare, spearheading leadership, best practice and innovation, as well as professional development in community and private settings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16967/23]
View answerOn 29th March 2022, Government accepted the findings of an Independent Review of the Early Learning and Childcare Operating Model in Ireland that a dedicated state agency is the optimal operating model for the early learning and childcare sector for the years ahead.A dedicated state agency will assist in the development of a more streamlined structure to better support the delivery of early learning and childcare, and will facilitate my Department in implementing and progressing the significant reform agenda envisaged under First 5, the Whole of Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families. It will also meet the Programme for Government commitment referred to by the Deputy.
My Department has commenced a comprehensive phase of analysis, planning, consultation, and engagement with sectoral stakeholders to determine how the recommendation arising from the Review can best be implemented. This phase includes a detailed design of a new agency, which will comprise a comprehensive evidence-based cost projection for the establishment and annual running costs of the agency, a determination of the appropriate national, local and regional structures, and an examination of all legal requirements, as well as transition and continuity planning and risk management.
A Programme Board has been appointed to oversee this work and comprises inter-departmental representatives alongside several external experts with experience at senior level in change management and large-scale reform, leadership, governance, public policy, and a knowledge of the early learning and childcare sector. A programme of work and set of priorities are currently being agreed with the Programme Board.
This work will culminate in a full agency design and implementation plan and I look forward to presenting this to Government for approval in due course.
48. Deputy Jennifer Murnane O'Connor asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the engagement he has had with Carlow County Council on the provision of a community hub in Carlow on the Tullow Road; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25681/23]
View answerEarlier this year, I was pleased to have the opportunity to meet with representatives from Carlow County Council to discuss this matter.
As the Deputy may be aware, the organisation which is due to be the main tenant of this facility is Carlow Regional Youth Services. This service receives €128,726 in annual funding from Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, to provide a range of services to children and young people in Carlow and its environs. They also receive funding from my Department to various youth projects under UBU - Your Place Your Space, a single youth funding scheme that targets disadvantaged young people with evidence informed interventions and services aimed at securing improved outcomes.
Tusla does not provide capital funding for projects such as this. Tusla remains in close contact with Carlow County Council on development of the hub. Organisations that wish to join the Family Resource Centre programme are advised to contact Tusla with regard to potential next steps. Any potential future expansion of the programme would be achieved in a fair and equitable fashion.
As regard the community hub, I understand a funding application under the Community Centre Investment Fund-2023 New Build, administered by Department of Rural and Community Development, is being prepared. Carlow County Council were invited to apply for capital funding under this initiative.
Tusla will continue to liaise with Carlow County Council and involved organisations and monitor the progress of establishing the community hub on the Tullow Road.
49. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of children reported to his Department as being at risk or under threat of becoming at risk depending on individual circumstances; the action proposed or taken in response; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25910/23]
View answer91. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the extent to which Tusla attempts to monitor all situations in all circumstances brought to its attention where children are thought to be at risk; the action taken; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25909/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 49 and 91 together.
To ask the Minister for Children; Equality; Disability; Integration and Youth the number of children reported to his Department as being at risk or under threat of becoming at risk depending on individual circumstances; the action proposed or taken in response; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
In January 2023, Tusla received 7,546 child protection and welfare referrals. Tusla acts urgently on notification of an immediate risk to a child. Children who are in a situation of immediate risk may initially be dealt with by An Garda Síochána or by Tusla, but in the main both agencies work together in such cases.
Tusla has an out of hours emergency number for An Garda Síochána which provides advice based on the circumstances and can identify whether a child is listed on the Child Protection Notification System (CPNS), this is a Tusla owned secure database, which lists children who are considered to be at ongoing risk of significant harm.
There is a 24/7 'out of hours' social work team available in Dublin, Wicklow, Kildare and Cork and on call social workers in other areas throughout the country. Tusla has a network of emergency foster care placements for children in need of emergency care out of hours.
Gardaí have specific powers under Section 12 of the 1991 Child Care Act to remove a child from a situation of danger, and under Section 13 of that same act, to deliver that child into the custody of Tusla. Tusla will carry out an assessment to determine the child's needs. This may in some cases include applying for an Emergency Care Order. In all cases, a plan will be put in place to ensure that the child is safe from harm. Where a child is already in care, Tusla will make a determination as to whether the child is safe in their placement or if they need to be moved.
My officials are in regular contact with Tusla in relation to all aspects of its work. Tusla submits monthly and quarterly performance reports which are reviewed by the Department. Tusla submits 'Need to Know' notifications to this Department. The purpose of a Need to Know notification is to alert myself and my officials to serious incidents and to provide information on what action is being taken.
Tusla’s governing legislation, the Child and Family Agency Act, 2013 sets out the key elements of the Minister’s Performance Framework (S.41) to provide
Tusla with policy guidance, direction and prioritisation parameters for the preparation of its Corporate Plan.
A Performance Framework for Tusla is developed every three years. 2023 is the final year of the three-year planning cycle of the current Performance Framework. I will deliver my next Performance framework to Tusla by September this year. This will inform Tusla’s Corporate plan to be delivered in December 2023.
Tusla receives funding from a number of budget subheads within my Department as well as from the Department of Education. For 2023, Tusla has a budget allocation of €1.020 billion.
50. Deputy Jennifer Murnane O'Connor asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his Department’s plans to address waiting lists for assessments for children with special needs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25682/23]
View answerThe Government is committed to delivering real and tangible solutions to enhance services to better support the needs of children with special needs in Ireland.
Children with complex special needs access therapy services through the Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNTs). These services can be accessed through the Assessment of Needs (AON) process but children do not require an Assessment of Need under the Disability Act to access health services. Many children in receipt of therapy services have not gone through the AON process.
Delays in accessing an AON relates directly to vacancies across the CDNT network and work is ongoing by the HSE to maximise the capacity of CDNTs via recruitment and retention initiatives.
Applications for AON under the Act have risen steadily since its implementation in June 2007. 7144 applications for AON were received in the most recent 4 quarters (Q2, 2022 – Q1, 2023). This was the highest number of applications received in any 12 month period since Part 2 of the Act was commenced in June 2007.
Funding was allocated in Budget 2023 to facilitate additional assessments through a suite of measures including
• Establishment of dedicated AON assessment teams.
• Private procurement and overtime initiatives for existing staff.
• Recruitment of administrative resources to free up therapists in order to assist with AONs.
The Department and the HSE are intent on using all available capacity to address the AON backlog. In the context of this backlog, regarding costs that have been expended in obtaining private services, the Department has begun engagement with the HSE to consider what options might exist in respect of a proposal for a time-bound and quality assured reimbursement scheme.
Both the Government and the HSE remain committed to the delivery of appropriate services for children with disabilities and will work with families and staff to develop services that meet their needs.
51. Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will provide details on the national childcare scheme, NCS; the number of providers that are signed up to the Together for Better funding model; the number of children who receive the NCS subsidy; if there are plans to expand the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25546/23]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, in September 2022, I launched Together for Better, the new funding model for early learning and childcare. Together for Better brings together three major programmes, the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, including the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) and the Core Funding scheme. A fourth programme – the Equal Participation Model – is currently under development.
Over 4,200 providers or 95% of the eligible cohort - have now signed up and are fulfilling a range of conditions of this new funding model, including:
• maintaining fees at September 2021 levels so the full impact of recent changes to the NCS are felt; and
• offering the ECCE programme and the NCS to families, which has given rise to a 15% increase in the number providers offering the NCS in the last year.
Record numbers of families are now being supported by the NCS to offset the cost of early learning and childcare. As of 8 May, a total of 118,089 children are benefitting from an NCS subsidy. This is a substantial increase – of more than 90% - when compared to this time last year when 61,302 children were in receipt of a subsidy.
Moreover, following Budget 2023, the minimum level of support under the NCS is now €1.40 per hour. For a family using 45 hours of early learning and childcare per week – this represents €3,276 off the cost of early learning and childcare per child per year.
Further enhancements to the funding model will be considered in the context of implementing remaining recommendations set out in Partnership for the Public Good. There is also a commitment to opening up the NCS to childminders in the National Action Plan for Childminding, which I have previously signalled would be a priority for me in this year’s Estimates process.
52. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth he steps he taking to increase the number of full-time residential places available to persons with intellectual and-or physical disabilities, in view of the critical shortage of such places; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25485/23]
View answerThis Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which help empower them to live their best lives.
Residential services make up the largest part of the specialist community-based disability services funding currently disbursed by the HSE. As of March 2023, the HSE is funding a total of 8,330 existing residential placement delivered predominately by section 38 and section 39 organisations funded under the Health Act 2004.
The HSE National Service Plan 2023 provides for the support of additional residential placements across a range of service need including 43 new placements, 23 residential packages for young people aging out of TUSLA placements, 18 delayed transfers of care, additional transitions of young people under 65 inappropriately placed in nursing homes and further moves from congregated settings.
The further expansion of services, including residential places, will be the subject of appropriate engagements in the context of the 2024 estimates process.
It is important too to refer to the Review of Disability Social Care Demand and Capacity Requirements to 2032, which was published in July 2021. The review sets out the additional capacity required in specialist disability social care services in light of anticipated demographic changes, and addresses the gap between available services and the level of unmet need. It is intended to address the capacity deficits in a phased approach over this period.
As the deputy will be aware, in March of this year, responsibility for specialist community-based disability services moved from Department of Health to the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.
An Action Plan for Disability Services has been developed by an interdepartmental working group to progress action on the findings of the Capacity Review. While there have been some delays in publishing the draft Plan, now that the transfer of functions has been completed it is intended that progress in this area will be accelerated.
The developments planned for 2023 within the available funding will improve services for many, but the scale of need identified in the Capacity Review report will require the finalisation and implementation of the Disability Action Plan.
53. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will respond to the fact that the Office of the Ombudsman for Children has stated that Ireland is falling behind on children’s rights; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26082/23]
View answerIn January this year I led the Irish delegation to the UN Committee Hearing on the Rights of the Child in Geneva. Their concluding observations welcomed the legislative, institutional and policy measures Ireland has already taken to implement the Convention. However, they also raised concerns and gave recommendations on where we need to do better. The UN observations, along with the available data and findings from consultations, will inform the next national policy framework for children and young people in Ireland.
My Department expects to publish this policy framework in the coming months. The Blueprint for the Framework was published in August 2022 and set out the approach to the framework which takes a rights-based approach. This includes a focus on system level actions which enable an environment where children and young people’s rights and needs are central considerations. These actions are largely based on the UN Committee’s General Measures of implementation and include: Piloting child rights impact assessments; conducting a legislative review of compliance with the UNCRC; piloting the introduction of child budgeting and further development and dissemination of sufficient and reliable data on children and young people, disaggregated to enable identification of discrimination and/or disparities in the realisation of rights.
The Voice of the Child is a central consideration and this Framework will build on my Department's extensive work to date on developing children's participation in decisions that affect them.
My Department will also be hosting a Child Summit before the end of 2023 to raise awareness of children’s rights in the context of the measures proposed in the new National Policy Framework.
54. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the steps he is taking to address staffing shortages on children’s disability network teams in CHO 4. [25840/23]
View answerAs this refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
55. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth when he anticipates being able to provide suitable accommodation for all refugees and asylum seekers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25935/23]
View answerThe accommodation of international protection applicants (IPAs) is a demand-led process with applicants arriving in the country and seeking accommodation spontaneously.
Ireland is now accommodating over 85,400 people between those fleeing Ukraine and international protection applicants (IPAs). This compares with over 8,500 at the end of February 2022.
In terms of the Ukraine Crisis, efforts to secure additional accommodation include the continued matching of pledge offers. To date, over 7,300 Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection (BOTPs) have been accommodated in 3,200 pledge properties.
My Department is also collaborating with the OPW in implementing the 'rapid build' homes. The Government has approved the construction of 700 rapid builds for BOTP's with the potential to house up to 2,800 individuals in family units.
My Department is collaborating with both the D/Defence and Defence Forces in procuring additional temporary accommodation facilities including Kilbride Army Camp and Columbs Barracks in Mullingar has also recently come on stream.
IPAS considers all offers of accommodation and is availing of office buildings, decommissioned Defence Forces barracks and tents to try to address the shortfall. The Department is continuing to engage with providers on new accommodation and a number of repurposed buildings will shortly be brought into use as adult male accommodation to further reduce the numbers of unaccommodated.
Government is stepping up action to maximise the pace and scale of delivery on the accommodation strategy for people seeking international protection in Ireland. An expanded programme of work has now been agreed by Government that will allow consideration of sites for development for the use of alternative modular buildings.
In addition, the Department is progressing with a plan to deliver capacity through ‘floating accommodation’. Following detailed investigation and analysis of its use, and in consultation with various stakeholders including the Maritime Unit, Department of Transport, the Department is expected to publish a Request for Tender on eTenders in the coming weeks. It is envisaged that circa 1,500 bed spaces will be created from this accommodation type.
56. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to further reduce childcare costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25995/23]
View answer75. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the steps he is taking to address childcare costs. [25838/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 56 and 75 together.
Record levels of investment is been made by my Department to, inter alia, support parents with the costs of early learning and childcare
In September 2022, I launched Together for Better, the new funding model for early learning and childcare.
Together for Better brings together three major programmes, the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, including the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) and the Core Funding scheme. A fourth programme – the Equal Participation Model – is currently under development.
Over 4,200 providers or 95% of the eligible cohort - have now signed up and are fulfilling a range of conditions of this new funding model, including:
• maintaining fees at September 2021 levels so the full impact of recent changes to the NCS are felt; and
• offering the ECCE programme and the NCS to families, which has given rise to a 15% increase in the number providers offering the NCS in the last year.
Record numbers of families are now being supported by the NCS to offset the cost of early learning and childcare. As of 8 May, a total of 118,089 children are benefitting from an NCS subsidy. This is a substantial increase – of more than 90% - when compared to this time last year when 61,302 children were in receipt of a subsidy.
Moreover, following Budget 2023, the minimum level of support under the NCS is now €1.40 per hour. For a family using 45 hours of early learning and childcare per week – this represents €3,276 off the cost of early learning and childcare per child per year.
Further enhancements to the funding model will be considered in the context of implementing remaining recommendations set out in Partnership for the Public Good. There is also a commitment to opening up the NCS to childminders in the National Action Plan for Childminding, which I have previously signalled would be a priority for me in this year’s Estimates process.
57. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will provide details of his engagements with survivor and relative groups concerning potential interventions at the sites of former mother and baby homes. [25839/23]
View answerAs outlined in my previous reply to the Deputy on 30 March 2023, consultation with survivors and relative groups was an important part of the development of the Institutional Burials Act 2022. After taking Office, I visited the site of the former Mother and Baby Institution in Tuam, Co. Galway, and met with survivors and relatives of those who died while resident there. I carefully considered the issues raised by them in the development of the legislation, which provides the underlying legal basis for an intervention, whereby the remains of those who died in residential institutions, and who were buried in a manifestly inappropriate manner, may be recovered and re-interred in a respectful and appropriate way.
Last October the Government made an order under the legislation to direct the establishment of an independent office to manage the intervention at the Tuam site and, on 20 March this year, I formally established the Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam. Last week I announced the appointment of Daniel Mac Sweeney as the Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam who now heads up the independent Office.
Progress at the various stages has been communicated to survivors and any other stakeholders who have expressed an interest in receiving updates on these issues from my Department through our dedicated mailing list. I know that an early priority for the newly appointed Director is to engage with survivors and former residents.
I have also engaged with groups associated with other former institutions and I am aware of concerns in relation to the appropriate treatment of sites, as well as calls for investigations.
As noted in my previous reply, on foot of the Government’s Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions, last November the Minister for Housing Local Government and Heritage wrote to all City and County Councils requesting that Development Plan processes give adequate consideration to incorporating appropriate measures to ensure the protection of unrecorded burial sites associated with an institution.
In relation to the former institution in Bessborough, the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes and certain related matters concluded that it is likely that some of the children who died while resident there are buried in the grounds but, following extensive efforts, it was unable to find any physical or documentary evidence of this. As no evidence of burial locations was found, the Commission did not consider it feasible to excavate the full available site, which amounts to 60 acres.
I have publicly emphasised my view that any proposed development at the Bessborough site should have due regard to the Commission's reports and give adequate consideration to the views of all survivors and family members, including requests for appropriate access and respectful memorialisation in due course.
58. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of unaccompanied minors currently in State care; the number of unaccompanied minors who have gone missing from State care in each of the past ten years and to date in 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25792/23]
View answerStatutory and operational responsibility for the delivery of child protection and welfare services is a matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. The Deputy is seeking information in relation to an operational matter for Tusla. Consequently, I have referred the matter to Tusla, and requested that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
59. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the steps he is taking to provide respite services for disabled people and children and their families in County Cork. [25841/23]
View answerAs the query relates to service matters, I am referring it to the HSE for direct response to the Deputy.
60. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth further to a Topical Issue matter I raised on 3 May 2023, the progress, if any, in supporting young adults with intellectual disabilities to attend training centres and workshops in a post-second level setting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25896/23]
View answerThe HSE provides specialist disability services, including Day Services and Rehabilitative Training, to people with disabilities who require such services, and people with intellectual disabilities would form the majority of service users who are supported by these services. While day service funding does not include transport, some transport supports are provided by the HSE or funded agencies on a discretionary basis, and a variety of transport solutions are pursued in different CHO areas. These include travel training to enable public transport to be used, where appropriate, local transport such as Local Link, private bus transport and taxis, and some service providers provide transport where capacity exists.
In general, day service users are in receipt of disability allowance and are automatically entitled to the Free Travel Pass. The HSE have been working with the National Transport Authority on this issue of transport to day services, through the ‘Open Routes’ project. Open Routes is based on the idea that transport to HSE services such as day services would be best served by accessible local public transport such as the Local Link, transporting people to their day services, but also serving the wider local community as well with enhanced public transport provision.
The approach is being piloted in Leitrim. The NTA advise that the Integrated Pilot Project was developed in close collaboration with the HSE, with a revised network that is designed to meet the needs of mainstream public transport users as well as the transport needs of passengers with disabilities and those accessing health care services in the county. To date all feedback with regard to the pilot from stakeholders such as HSE, HSE Day Centres, external stakeholders and passengers has been very positive. In addition to the positive feedback, passenger numbers on Regular Rural Services has grown considerably since the introduction of the revised TFI Local Link network for County Leitrim.
This is a model that could be applied in other parts of the country, with the NTA leading on this and working closely with local partners such as the HSE. My Department will be meeting shortly with officials from the Department of Transport to evaluate next steps for this project..
At a national level, under the National Disability Inclusion Strategy, the Department of Transport has responsibility for the continued development of accessibility and availability of accessible public transport. To develop proposals for better coordination of transport and mobility supports for people with disabilities, a Transport Working Group was established, co-ordinated by this Department and chaired by myself as Minister for Disability.
The outcomes of the work of the Group will provide a valuable evidence base for future policy development, including the successor strategy to the National Disability Inclusion Strategy. The report was published in February and is available on the DCEDIY website.
In relation to the individual case the Deputy raised previously, my officials have requested a report from the HSE and will provide a response as soon as possible.
