Adjournment Debate

Community Development Projects

Deputy Dessie Ellis

Since 2007 the Young Ballymun project has built a collective community plan for children's services, with 30 active partners across the health, education, early years and community sectors. This project has been very successful in helping to improve the lot of children in this area and is a best practice model that should be rolled out across the State. Ballymun has suffered and continues to suffer from disadvantage and child poverty, but it has made significant strides to deal with these issues, in particular since the inception of Young Ballymun in 2007.

Since then almost €20 million has been invested in rolling out a strategy to address the causes and effects of child poverty. This was made possible by the generosity and foresight of Atlantic Philanthropies and their partnership with the Department of Health and the Office of the Minister for Children, now the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

In December 2009 the Young Ballymun plan moved into full operation, investing in primary care health services, early years providers, primary schools and family and community services in a shared vision to improve learning and well-being outcomes for children in Ballymun. Working with teachers, principals and parents, literacy outcomes in primary schools have significantly improved. An analysis of school literacy test data has shown that the number of children in need of learning support halved from 2007 to 2015, and the proportion of children with reading difficulty decreased by nearly a third. In spite of the adverse economic conditions, the banking crisis, the recession and major reductions in public investment and public services, the plan has been, and is being, successfully implemented and the outcomes are remarkable. Improved outcomes for children in Ballymun have been measured with high levels of literacy improvement across primary schools, improved child social and emotional development and, crucially, measurable improvements in parenting know-how and in the mental health of parents. These measures have laid the foundation stones for long-term social regeneration and breaking the cycle of poverty. To achieve real change for communities experiencing social disadvantage, the realisation that this a long-term project is essential. However, extra funding is needed to complete the programme.

Deputy Róisín Shortall

I am very pleased to join with Deputy Ellis in this initiative. Deputy Ellis and I are long-time representatives of the Ballymun area, but we also work very closely with public, national and local representatives from all parties who are absolutely committed to the Young Ballymun model. We have long experience of the success of that model and are very conscious of the scale, depth and complexity of disadvantage within an area like Ballymun, a town of 18,000 people. It is important to bear in mind that huge scale. We are very conscious that since 2007 Young Ballymun has made an enormous difference to the lives of many children and their parents within Ballymun. That is because it is not a single project but an area-based change programme that works very closely with everybody involved in children's lives: parents, public health nurses, preschool leaders, primary school teachers and everybody who interacts with children. That is the secret of its success.

There are some 4,000 children, parents and service providers involved in the Young Ballymun project this year alone. It has been hugely successful and has made an enormous difference to the well-being of children and families in the area. That is why we are so disappointed that funding is running out for this project. All of us, at a political level, met with the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. We made the case and were told that consideration would be given to extending the funding to allow Young Ballymun to continue for another year. We were very disappointed when the Department came up with €1.2 million and split it three ways, even though the Young Ballymun project is on an entirely different scale from the other two projects that received funding. This project is supported by many different people, from Danny McCoy to Sr. Stanislaus Kennedy, Tony Fahey and Fr. Peter McVerry. This is a tried and tested programme. We want to retain it, and it needs to be expanded to other areas. That model is there and can be used. I ask the Minister, please, not to close it down.

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (Deputy Katherine Zappone)

I appreciate Deputies Ellis and Shortall's mention of this important issue. I have read some of the opinions of the very esteemed people Deputy Shortall identified and, as she is well aware, I watched the origins as well as some of the earlier growth of Young Ballymun and its impact. I welcome the opportunity to explain the state of play from the Department's perspective. I indicated earlier to Deputy Shortall that I have spent some time reviewing these issues in the early days of my ministry.

The area-based childhood programme, ABC, runs from 2013 to 2017 and is a prevention and early intervention initiative jointly funded by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs and Atlantic Philanthropies to the amount of €29.7 million. The aim of the ABC programme is to test and evaluate prevention and early intervention approaches to improve outcomes for children and families living in 13 areas of disadvantage in Ireland. Young Ballymun is one of the 13 organisations participating in the ABC programme, and was allocated €5 million of the overall €29.7 million ABC budget - the highest recipient of programme funding. Prior to the ABC programme, Young Ballymun received €15 million under the prevention and early intervention programme, PEIP, which ran from 2007 to 2013.

In respect of the need for additional funding which the Deputies raised, three organisations participated in the PEIP, moved into the ABC programme at an early stage and were due to conclude operations in mid-2016. Deputy Shortall indicated that the Department has committed additional funding of €400,000 to each of the three organisations: Young Ballymun, the childhood development initiative in TaIlaght and the Preparing for Life programme in Darndale. I acknowledge what she has said about how disappointing that amount of money is for Young Ballymun, but this base level funding-----

Deputy Róisín Shortall

It is on a different scale.

Deputy Katherine Zappone

I hear the Deputy. This base level funding will go towards aligning the completion of programme activities for all 13 ABC grant recipients to August 2017. In the meantime, the funders and the three local sites are exploring further funding arrangements to ensure continued service provision. It will also ensure that Young Ballymun can inform the national evaluation of the ABC programme, which is extremely critical, prioritise those aspects of its service delivery that demonstrate compelling evidence of significant positive impact, and progress the transition of these programmes and services into the mainstream locally. Young Ballymun has welcomed this additional funding and has indicated that it will submit a board-approved proposal outlining a prioritised programme provision in the coming weeks.

A broad range of interventions have been tried out across all 13 ABC sites. Rather than rolling out a model for any one particular ABC site across the State, a strategic approach will be taken whereby interventions supported by the best evidence of impact will be identified and the lessons from these disseminated. Several evaluations are continuing which will inform this approach. First there is a national evaluation of all the sites participating in the ABC programme, conducted by the Centre for Effective Services. Second, alongside that national evaluation, many sites are conducting local evaluations of their work. Very promising evaluations are already available from other sites in the original PEIP. In the case of Young Ballymun, as part of the funding arrangement under the ABC programme, the funders requested that it develop further its evidence base supporting its range of interventions. In response, Young Ballymun commissioned a performance story report in 2015 to assemble an evidence base to support its work, produced a draft report and assembled a jury of international experts to review it. They concluded that there was evidence of change in a range of outcome areas in Ballymun and acknowledged the contributions of the programme and other initiatives to these changes. It also concluded that some areas of evidence required strengthening before firmer conclusions could be drawn. I want to ensure that the lessons from effective interventions under the ABC programme are harnessed and brought into the mainstream of existing services nationally. Officials in the Department are working to ensure coherent and strategic next steps for prevention and early intervention in Ireland, and this work will be given added impetus given the range of programme for Government commitments. I hope to have that well advanced in the coming months and to have a clearer view of the next steps. We are considering lots of different issues in that regard and will examine evaluation results and the recommendations of the group to help bring the lessons into the mainstream. In the meantime, the officials continue to liaise with Young Ballymun to ensure priority services can be secured until mid-2017.

Arts Centres

Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire

I share the concern of Deputies Ellis and Shortall, not only in respect of Young Ballymun but also with regard to the Preparing for Life programme and the childhood development initiative in Tallaght.

My Adjournment matter relates to the event centre proposed and planned for Cork. It is a crucial project for Cork city. The lack of such a facility during the years has led to any number of events, incuding corporate events, party political Ard-Fheiseanna and concerts, being lost to Cork, with the potential economic benefits. It is welcome that the previous Government committed to funding the project. It was, by and large, an exception to the lack of investment in Cork in recent years. The M20 project was not delivered, which was a scandalous decision and the most notable example.

It is believed the centre would be able to facilitate approximately 200 performances a year and mean about €50 million for the local economy and 500,000 visitors to Cork city per annum. It is an enormous project of significant value which is very important to commerce and the leisure industry in the city. Not only that, there would also be food and retail aspects, as well as apartments. It has the potential to revitalise substantial parts of Cork city, from Barrack Street to North Main Street and South Main Street, right into the marsh, to which parts of the city it would make a major difference. There would also be by-products such as employment creation.

I am aware of the Government's commitment of €10 million, as well as the €6 million committed by Cork City Council, both of which added €2 million subsequently, which means that the level of public funding for the project stands at about €20 million. The project was given the green light in December 2014. It is now four months since the Taoiseach turned the sod and it is becoming increasingly clear that it was just a farce and a stunt in the context of an election. There has been absolutely no progress since. The people of Cork are beginning to wonder about the current status of the project and what will happen next. As yet, there has been no construction. We are all aware that it will be a lengthy project which will probably require 26 months to complete and the only sod that has been turned on the site is the one that was turned by the Taoiseach. There is some confusion in Cork about the project. I do not want to say there is significant concern because there is no intention to create panic. My understanding is the Government commitment still stands. I hope the Minister of State will affirm this in the strongest possible terms and that the Government will not only follow through on it with funding but will also be actively involved in the process of ensuring the project is delivered and progressed.

Heineken BAM is one of the largest partners involved in the project, but we have received no update from it since March. I understand the design has not yet been completed, nor have the contracts, never mind the construction phase. There needs to be a clear commitment to drive the project which is both significant and expensive, involving a cost of some €53 million. Aside from the €20 million in public funding, €33 million is required from the various partners involved in it. A significant job of work needs to be done and it is vitally important that we have a better understanding of how the project is progressing, in terms of financing, design, planning, contracts and, most importantly, construction. Things have dragged on for far too long. As I said, in the four months since the Taoiseach turned the sod we have seen no progress. The people of Cork are becoming frustrated and concerned.

Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (Deputy Seán Canney)

I am responding on behalf of the Minister for Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Heather Humphreys.

In the context of the Government's infrastructure and capital investment plan for the period 2016 to 2021, Building on Recovery, the Minister has allocated a grant of €12 million to Cork City Council towards the development of a multifunctional event centre in Cork city, the Cork event centre. The total project cost is estimated to be approximately €50 million and the centre will be built on the former Beamish and Crawford brewery site in the city centre. The grantee, Cork City Council, not the Department, is responsible for the management and delivery of the project. A service level agreement has been signed between the Department and the council which sets out the terms and conditions of the grant. Cork City Council undertook a competitive dialogue tender process in 2014 and a preferred bidder was selected, namely, Heineken BAM Consortium, for the construction of the centre and Live Nation limited as operator. Competitive dialogue is a procedure designed to provide more flexibility in the tendering process for more complex contracts. A competitive dialogue procedure was adopted in order to open a dialogue with suitable candidates to identify and define the means best suited to satisfying the council's needs.

I understand from Cork City Council that negotiations with the preferred bidder are at an advanced stage and that it expects construction to begin in 2016. It is estimated that up to 250 people will be employed in the construction and design stage. The objective of the grant is to facilitate the council in delivering the design, construction and operation of a new multi-functional event centre in Cork city centre, with a capacity of 6,000 persons. It is envisaged that the event centre will, inter alia, be capable of accommodating a range of events, including concerts, festivals, family entertainment, cultural, sports, exhibitions, conferences and trade shows.

The project supports the high levels goals of the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, namely, to promote and develop Ireland's world-class artistic and creative strengths at home and abroad, maximising their societal, economic and reputational value for the economy and to support cultural tourism as one of the most important elements of Ireland's tourism product, thus stimulating job creation and economic regeneration. The Government appreciates the importance of the arts, culture and creative industries to our society and economy. As a nation, we have a distinctive tradition of storytelling, image-making and music which complements many fields of the arts. The arts are and always have been fundamental human enterprises. In understanding art we understand ourselves. The arts are central to cultural identity and our identity as a nation. Irish people have a deep affinity with the practice of the arts. Arts and culture are important in the strategy for marketing Ireland and economic growth. In some respects, our culture is our international calling card. The Cork event centre will play its part in attracting visitors and promoting cultural tourism on the island of Ireland. It will add significantly to the cultural infrastructure of Cork for the enjoyment of citizens and tourists alike.

The importance of the arts cannot be overstated. They help to foster creativity and innovation. In Ireland we are conscious of the role of the arts and culture sector in providing vital opportunities for self-expression and participation. We are determined to do our best to provide the conditions in which creative expression can flourish and are committed to enhancing access to the arts for people of all ages and income levels. The grant provided for Cork City Council for the new Cork event centre is critical to the delivery of the new centre and will help to underpin and grow the already vibrant arts and culture sector in Cork and its surrounds.

Flood Relief Schemes

Deputy Eugene Murphy

My first duty is to congratulate Deputy Seán Canney, an east Galway man, on his promotion to Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works. There is no doubt that he will have one of the most difficult jobs in the coming year and he will share the portfolio with the Minister of State, Deputy Kevin Boxer Moran who, no more than the Minister of State, knows quite a lot about the impact of the floods.

Flooding is still a major issue throughout the western region, particularly in counties Roscommon and Galway. Many homes, businesses and individuals are still bearing the brunt of the devastating consequences of widespread flooding.

The Minister of State, Deputy Canney, acknowledged on local radio recently that we have major difficulties. The floods have disappeared to some degree in certain areas, but many parts of County Roscommon in particular are still badly affected by flooding such as Castleplunkett in west Roscommon, Knockcroghery just outside Roscommon town and Dysart in south Roscommon.

I have spoken to individuals in Roscommon County Council who informed me that the estimate to repair the damage caused by the floods of 2015 and 2016 is €11 million. That is the amount required to repair the damage caused to roads, buildings and land. The allocation received from the Department to date is €4.9 million. The council faces a shortfall of more than €6 million. Roscommon County Council could apply for funding through the non-coastal mitigation measures available from the Office of Public Works of which the Minister of State is aware. However, the funding is based on a cost-benefit system, which means areas with a greater population density are favoured as they can be proven to be better value for money. For example, an application to address flooding issues in an estate of 16 or 20 houses would be favoured above an individual house in a rural area. Given that Roscommon is a sparsely populated county with significant distances between houses, it would be difficult to get the Office of Public Works to favour what we need in Roscommon. That is our biggest problem. If the situation is not rectified, it will have a detrimental effect on the constituency as many areas are sparsely populated and many homes and businesses which were devastated by recent floods are still suffering the consequences and trying to get back on their feet. Now we have the added issue of not being able to get insurance cover, which is another matter that must be faced by the Government.

A total of 133 different areas throughout County Roscommon were affected by the floods. Many home owners and business owners are becoming increasingly frustrated as they become the forgotten story in this land. There are stories behind the headlines whereby farmers face a bleak winter as they cannot cut silage or hay because some of their land is still flooded. The grass on the land would not be fit for use as fodder because, as the Minister of State is aware, all of the nutrients have been taken out of the ground by the flood water. For several months people have had to make long round trips to bring their children to school. Six months on, one house still requires to have water pumped out. The situation in another two or three houses has just been sorted out in recent weeks. I have invited the Minister of State to come to County Roscommon and I know he will do so. We will plan the visit and do it right. It is important that the Minister of State visits County Roscommon.

The allocated funding does not address flooding in and around turloughs, which is a major issue in the constituency, in particular in areas such as Lough Funshinagh outside Knockcroghery where 250 acres of land is still covered by water. The Minister of State will see that when he visits the county. The water level has only dropped by 16 in. A 92 year old man told me he has never seen such a problem in his lifetime. He cannot understand what has gone wrong. As the Minister of State is aware, agriculture is the backbone of the county. The economy of the county is important to us. In the context of the 250 acre area that is flooded, a number of farmers are affected as the land is divided into smallholdings. I urge the Minister of State to do all in his power to introduce a scheme straight away that would give sufficient money to Roscommon County Council to carry out at the very least fire brigade action as the county is in a desperate state.

Deputy Seán Canney

I thank Deputy Eugene Murphy for his kind words. I look forward to working with him as Fianna Fáil's spokesperson on flood relief. I congratulate him on taking on that position. Like Deputy Murphy, my constituency has been well and truly doused with water since 2009 and again in 2012 and 2015, and I share his concerns.

I am grateful to Deputy Murphy for raising this issue and for giving me the opportunity to outline to the House the response of the Office of Public Works, OPW, to the challenges posed by the risk and actuality of flooding. I am very aware of the impact on communities of the severe flooding events of last winter and the continuing risk that flooding will recur. During those flood events, a co-ordinated response was provided in line with the Government's national emergency framework. The broad-ranging response targeted the immediate needs of people and communities through the delivery of sandbags and pumps to prevent flood waters entering properties, the deployment of Defence Forces personnel to assist local authorities, the provision through the humanitarian assistance scheme of funding for food, clothes, accommodation, the replacement of household equipment and structural repairs for the households worst affected by flooding, and the provision of special supports to businesses and farmers to ameliorate the consequences of the floods.

The OPW, as the lead State body for the co-ordination and implementation of Government policy on the management of flood risk, is committed to a planned and structured approach to the issue. The core strategy for addressing the significant flood risks nationally is the catchment flood risk assessment and management, CFRAM, programme of the Office of Public Works, which is being undertaken by engineering consultants on behalf of the OPW, working in partnership with local authorities. A total of 300 locations nationwide are being assessed which have been designated as potentially being at significant flood risk. The CFRAM programme involves the production of predictive flood mapping for each of the 300 locations, the development of preliminary flood risk management options and the production of flood risk management plans.

The draft flood mapping is now being finalised following completion of the national statutory public consultation on 23 December 2015. Work on the development of preliminary options to address flood risk is under way. Following finalisation of the mapping and the identification of flood risk management options, the final output from this important project will be integrated flood risk management plans containing specific measures to address in a comprehensive and sustainable way the significant flood risks identified. The draft plans are scheduled to be made available for public consultation in the coming weeks. Following the public consultation process, the finalised plans will include a prioritised list of measures, both structural and non-structural, to address flood risk in an environmentally sustainable and cost-effective manner.

The Government's Capital Investment Plan 2016 to 2021 includes a significant increase in the levels of investment in the area of flood relief, and this investment programme will allow for consideration of measures arising from the flood risk management plans. A total of €430 million has been made available in the investment plan.

Progress has continued this year on the existing capital works programme of the OPW through ongoing construction works on five major projects and the advancement of many others through design and procurement stages. Works have commenced on the Claregalway flood relief scheme in County Galway, and works will shortly be commenced on schemes in Skibbereen, where the contract was signed only last Tuesday, and in Bandon, County Cork, Foynes, County Limerick, and the Dunkellin river and Aggard stream in County Galway.

In addition, several schemes have been advanced through design and will be progressed into the confirmation stage under the Arterial Drainage Acts or planning under the planning regulations later this year. These include Blackpool, Clonakilty, Glashaboy and Douglas in County Cork and Templemore, County Tipperary. The OPW and Cork City Council have also agreed in principle to advance flood relief works in Cork city as part of a public realm project being undertaken by the city council on Morrison's Island.

Local flooding issues are a matter, in the first instance, for each local authority to investigate and address, and local authorities may carry out flood mitigation works using their own resources. The OPW also funds local authorities for small-scale flood relief studies and works up to a cost limit of €500,000 under the minor flood mitigation works scheme. Already in 2016, the OPW has approved 25 projects in various parts of the country.

Further Education and Training Programmes

Deputy Seán Haughey

I wish to bring to the attention of the House a serious matter that has developed in Donaghmede, Dublin 13, in respect of further education and community education services. The Trinity Adult Resource Group for Education and Training, TARGET, is based at St. Kevin's national school in Donaghmede and has been at this location since 1993, that is, for 23 years. It provides vital services to the community of Donaghmede and surrounding areas. These services include adult literacy for early school leavers and other adult learners experiencing difficulties in this area, a counselling service, counsellor training, community child care, English classes for non-nationals, community education and computer classes for the elderly. A community employment scheme with 30 participants also is based at TARGET. Some of these community employment scheme participants are outsourced to other community groups in the parish and play a vital role in community development.

It appears that the host school, St. Kevin's, is under pressure for space. There was a previous agreement whereby TARGET would cede two classrooms back to the school for September 2016. However, TARGET received a letter from the school at the beginning of this month requesting that all the space be returned to the school by 30 June this year. In short, TARGET has been asked to vacate the building at very short notice. This has come as a severe blow and could lead to the loss of vital services in this area. Funding streams will be put at risk and employment could be lost. I thank the Minister for Education and Skills for his attendance this evening. He obviously is a local Deputy like me and I ask him to use his good offices to try to reach a negotiated agreement with the various parties with a view to solving this problem. At the very least, TARGET needs more time to try to deal with this difficult situation. It is clear that St. Kevin's national school requires more space. Perhaps a different solution can be found to ensure the school has the necessary capacity and I believe this must be explored further. It may also be that alternative facilities can be found for TARGET. I understand that a formal letter will be sent by TARGET in the near future to St. Kevin's school asking it to reconsider the matter.

In a previous life, I was Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills with special responsibility for adult and further education and training and I am, therefore, very much aware of the importance of adult literacy and community education. This plays a crucial role in disadvantaged areas in particular as regards personal development and has positive benefits for society as a whole. The loss of these services in Donaghmede would be devastating. Consequently, I ask the Minister to use his good offices to try to sort out this matter as the situation is urgent. He also, for example, could consider asking the City of Dublin Education and Training Board, CDETB, to intervene with a view to solving these difficulties. This requires a diplomatic solution and while I do not wish to tread on any toes in this regard, the services are well worth saving. With a little goodwill on all sides, a practical solution can be found. I look forward to hearing the Minister's response to this urgent matter.

Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Richard Bruton)

I thank Deputy Haughey for raising this important issue. I note neither the education and training board nor the Department had any advance notice that this issue was likely to occur. The City of Dublin Education and Training Board has been working with TARGET for a long time and, as the Deputy noted, it has been providing further education and training in Donaghmede for more than 20 years. It was located in St. Kevin's school, Newbrook Road, Donaghmede, and it provides a wide range of courses which the Deputy has outlined and I do not believe I need to repeat them. As he indicated, they include services that go well beyond the remit of the Department of Education and Skills into counselling, child care and many community services but it is supported specifically in respect of adult education provision by the CDETB.

I am aware of the pressure of school enrolments on St. Kevin's junior school because it has experienced a 57% increase in the period between 2011 and 2015 and that trend is continuing. In that context, the school submitted an application in June 2015 to provide for the refurbishment of existing spaces to create two classroom-sized spaces to create a mainstream classroom and a resource room for special education. My Department examined and approved that application and the funding was provided. This latest decision by St. Kevin's, which has written to TARGET informing it that the school is not in position to renew the lease into the future, has come as news and obviously creates difficulties for TARGET in continuing its work. I have been in touch with the CDETB and it will make contact with representatives of TARGET to discuss the possible options, bearing in mind the pressures that exist.

As the Deputy requested, I will explore what solutions can be found to ascertain whether the service can be continued, as it has been delivering a valuable service for a considerable time and the notice received has been extremely abrupt. I undertake to pursue this matter, as the Deputy suggests, to establish whether a solution can be found that would allow this to continue. While I do not have a specific course of action I can recommend to the Deputy at this stage, I thank him for raising the matter and I assure him I will give it attention.

The Dáil adjourned at 5.25 p.m. until 2 p.m. on Tuesday, 14 June 2016.

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht - Thursday, 9 Jun 2016