Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 October 2023
284. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide a progress report on the recommendations of the research commissioned by Government entitled Preventing Homelessness among Care Leavers: Review of the Capital Assistance Scheme (CAS) for Care Leavers; if he plans to implement the recommendations of this report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43821/23]
View answerA number of the recommendations of the report 'Preventing Homelessness among Care Leavers: Review of the Capital Assistance Scheme for Care Leavers' are matters for my colleague the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, in conjunction with Tusla. These include recommendations regarding the age limits applying to Tusla aftercare support services, additional support for foster care placements and that aftercare planning commences at age 16.
Of the report's recommendations that are appropriate to my Department, one relates to caps on the purchase price of dwellings. I can confirm that such caps on the costs for residences for care leavers are not applied rigidly by my Department. While we anticipate that AHBs and local authorities will always strive to achieve reasonable value for money when acquiring properties and while guide cost figures are shared for this purpose, the fact that a cap does not apply to the purchase price will allow flexibility to acquire properties that are suitable and available.
In terms of recommendations on the continued and expanded availability of the scheme, I have increased the funding availability under CAS for 2023 and am satisfied therefore, that funding to support housing needs for care leavers is fully adequate under CAS going forward.
Furthermore in respect of care leavers, in November last I launched the Youth Homelessness Strategy which sets out 27 key actions to prevent youth homelessness, to improve the experiences of young people accessing emergency accommodation and to assist young people in exiting homelessness. Care leavers are one of six vulnerable cohorts identified in the Strategy as being particularly at risk of becoming homeless and disproportionately represented in the young homeless population and the actions in that Strategy target supports for those particular young people.
