Tuesday, 20 Jun 2017

Written Answers Nos 1909-1933

Disability Act Employment Targets

Ceisteanna (1909)

Fergus O'Dowd

Ceist:

1909. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the policy regarding the employment of persons with disabilities in her Department and in each State and semi-State body under the aegis of her Department; if there is a responsibility to employ persons with disabilities to a quota of 3% of its workforce; if this quota has now been exceeded; if there has been an advertised competition relating to this quota; if not, the reason therefor; the dates and details of such competitions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27132/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

My Department operates in accordance with the Disability Act 2005 and the Code of Practice for the Employment of People with a Disability in the Irish Civil Service to promote, support and annually report on its employment of persons with disabilities.

Part 5 of the Disability Act 2005 sets out the legal obligations of public service bodies:

- to promote and support the employment of people with disabilities;

- to comply with the statutory Code of Practice;

- to meet a target of 3% of employees with disabilities;

- to report each year on the achievement of these obligations.

The National Disability Authority (NDA) reports on compliance with the 3% target. In its latest published report, for the calendar year 2015, the NDA reported as follows in relation to my Department and the agencies under its aegis:

Department/Agencies	% age of employees with disabilities
Department of Children and Youth Affairs	7.1%
Child and Family Agency (TUSLA)	1.2%
Oberstown Children Detention Campus	1.6%
Adoption Authority of Ireland	18.2%
Ombudsman for Children's Office	0%

Direct recruitment to my Department is conducted through the Public Appointments Service (PAS), which operates a policy of equality of opportunity and selection on merit by means of fair and open competition in accordance with the Codes of Practice published by the Commission for Public Service Appointments. Recruitment to the agencies under the aegis of my Department is done either through PAS or on an equal opportunities basis.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities (CES) 2015 - 2024 was launched by the Government on 2 October 2015. The Government has already taken a number of key decisions as recommended in the Strategy:

- The public service employment target for people with disabilities will be increased on a phased basis from 3% to 6%;

- Special public service competitions for people with disabilities will be arranged and alternative recruitment channels for people with disabilities will be opened up.

The referred reply under Standing Order 42A was forwarded to the Deputy.

Youth Services Funding

Ceisteanna (1910)

Darragh O'Brien

Ceist:

1910. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the amount of mainstream funding from her Department and other Government Departments that is invested in youth programmes in the north County Dublin area; the projects that are being funded through this expenditure; the allocation for each; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27176/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

My Department administers a range of funding schemes and programmes to support the provision of youth services to young people throughout the country including those from disadvantaged communities. The funding schemes support national and local youth work involving approximately 1,400 youth work staff in youth services and communities throughout the country.

I am pleased to confirm that I have allocated an extra €5.5m in current funding to support the provision of youth services in 2017. This will bring the total youth funding by my Department to €57.4m, an increase of 10% over last year's allocation. The additional funding is being used for programmes that target disadvantaged young people and to assist national youth organisations in their work to support local voluntary youth services.

In 2017, an amount of €319,998 was allocated for the projects and services in North County Dublin. Balbriggan Youth Service has been allocated €86,803 while Swords/Baldoyle Youth Service has been allocated €233,195.

School Completion Programme

Ceisteanna (1911, 1912)

Thomas Byrne

Ceist:

1911. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she has read the ESRI review of the school completion programme; if her attention has been drawn to its findings regarding the effects of significant funding shortfalls making local groups unable to provide targeted interventions such as the provision of summer programmes for at-risk children; her views on whether the continued under-funding of the SCP by her Department is inconsistent with the ambition as stated in the programme for a partnership Government (details supplied); and her further views on whether her Department's and Tusla's lack of interest in the school completion programme is an indication that they do not consider the improvement of participation and retention of children in school integral to their core mandate. [27189/17]

Thomas Byrne

Ceist:

1912. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 605 of 16 May 2017, the way in which without data on a postcode or electoral district level the public and the Houses of the Oireachtas can be expected to evaluate the effects of the budget reductions that have taken place to the school completion programme and home school liaison programme since 2012 and in which the ESRI review of the programmes identified significant negative impacts on local provision of interventions; her views on whether staff time would be well spent in collating this data at this level in order to assess whether the impact of budget reductions identified by the qualitative ESRI review is widespread across different areas; and her further views on whether the reluctance of Tusla to compile this data indicates that it does not consider the improvement of participation and retention of children in school integral to its core mandate. [27190/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1911 and 1912 together.

I am advised by Tusla that the allocation of resources to the School Completion Programme (SCP) and Home School Community Liaison (HSCL) Programme is not linked to either postcode or electoral areas rather it is linked to schools based on the needs of the cohort of children attending each school.

Currently schools provide school based data which allows Tusla to compile county level reports for the Annual School Attendance Report. The two pieces of data schools are obliged to provide are details of children missing over 20 school days and aggregate school absences per school year. As children do not always attend school in their local or electoral area it would require every school in the country to report all students’ attendances with their postcode in order to generate comprehensive electoral area school attendance figures.

The majority of schools in the SCP programme are included as they were identified for extra supports under the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) programme which is managed by the Department of Education and Skills (DES).

Annual data regarding school attendance at county level is published by Tusla in the Annual School Attendance Reports which are available online at www.tusla.ie.

The Department of Education and Skills publish annual retention reports for DEIS schools www.education.ie and these reports demonstrate that school completion rates in DEIS schools have improved at a rate faster than other schools since 2012 which indicate that the interventions to support attendance, participation and retention including SCP and HSCL are making positive impacts.

The DEIS 2017 review also indicates that overall the suite of supports offered through DEIS have generated positive outcomes.

The SCP currently receives €24.7 million in annual finding which is used to support 124 local projects at an average of €200,000 per project. In line with all public services, the SCP was subject to cuts during the period of austerity. However since the SCP has come under the remit of Tusla in 2014 funding for the initative has not been cut. Tusla has committed significant resources to addressing the many recommendations in the ESRI Report to which the Deputy refers and when these recommendations are fully addressed, including the key areas of governance and employment, the matter of the funding of the SCP can be reviewed, particularly in the context of the recent review of the DEIS Programme.

The following are the actions undertaken by Tusla in response to the ESRI recommendations:

- All SCP staff have received 4 days of Continuous Professional Development in the last year with 2 further days planned for autumn 2017.

- Graphite Human Resource Company has been contracted to provide day to day Industrial Relations and Human Resources support to all 124 SCP Local Management Committees (LMCs)

- The Wheel has provided a series of Governance workshops and webinars to support LMCs.

- The SCP Retention Planning Template has been improved to assist with planning at local level.

- An employment audit was completed and this reflects the concerns raised by the ESRI report in relation to employment practices across some LMCs.

- SCP funding has remained constant since SCP came into Tusla.

- The number of HSCL Coordinators will increase from 400 to 419 from September 2017 as a result of the DEIS review bringing further schools into the DEIS support programme.

- SCP coordinators and project workers have been actively involved in all developments and have contributed positively to the CPD and Retention planning template.

- Work is ongoing on the development of a new Governance and employment model for SCP.

I have been assured that Tusla is fully committed to the School Completion Programme and will strive to ensure that the SCP is in a position to deliver consistent high quality provision nationally.

Child Abuse

Ceisteanna (1913, 1914, 1915)

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1913. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the criteria by which historical cases of child abuse are assigned as high priority, medium priority and low priority, respectively. [27191/17]

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1914. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of historical cases of child abuse that are assigned as high priority, medium priority and low priority, respectively. [27192/17]

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1915. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of staff on the specialist teams assigned to historical cases of child sexual abuse; and if this is their full-time role. [27193/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1913 to 1915, inclusive, together.

A historical or retrospective disclosure is where an adult discloses abuse experienced in childhood. I understand that the overwhelming majority of such disclosures are about sexual abuse. Tusla has informed me that a case is categorised as high priority if any of the following criteria apply: the alleged perpetrator has a conviction for sexual abuse or assault against child/young adult; the alleged perpetrator is residing with children/young adults; the alleged perpetrator is employed to work with children/young adults or involved with voluntary or community based activities; the alleged perpetrator makes an admission of abuse or if the disclosure refers to organised or ritual abuse.

A case is categorised as medium priority if it is not yet established if the alleged perpetrator has contact with children or young people or where a parent is already aware of potential concern and is acting appropriately and a safety plan is in place.

A case is categorised as low priority if it has been established that the alleged perpetrator does not have contact with children or young people, or there is no information to indicate that the alleged perpetrator has contact with children or young people.

Tusla has advised me that there were 1,895 historical/retrospective cases on hand at the end of March 2017. All of these referrals have been reviewed by a social worker and 551 were categorised as high priority, 943 were medium priority and 401 low priority.

I can advise the Deputy that the management of all referrals including retrospective/historical cases occurs at Area level. Each retrospective case referred to Tusla is screened by the Area Duty Team who will initially establish if there are any known child protection concerns and the Area will respond thereafter, as appropriate, to the referral. Tusla has advised me that a service improvement plan has been put in place to deal with these outstanding cases. In the first instance, specialist teams are working on high priority cases. Medium and low priority cases are assessed by social workers who are drawn from non-child protection teams, on a project basis, to deal with this work. They are provided with training and supervision.

I have asked Tusla to provide information on the number of staff on specialist teams assigned to historical cases of child sexual abuse and will revert to the Deputy when the reply is received.

School Expulsions

Ceisteanna (1916, 1917)

James Browne

Ceist:

1916. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of expulsions from and the number of students enrolled in each secondary school in County Wexford in each of the years 2014 to 2016 and to date in 2017, in tabular form. [27195/17]

James Browne

Ceist:

1917. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of suspensions from each secondary school in County Wexford in each of the years 2014 to 2016 and to date in 2017, in tabular form. [27196/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1916 and 1917 together.

The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the following table. Tusla does not receive enrolment numbers from individual schools.

The individual schools are not named for data protection purposes.

Number of Expulsions and Suspensions in all Post Primary Schools in Wexford.

Individual schools are identified by letter.

2014/2015 School Year

School Name	Number of Expulsions	Number of Suspensions
A	2	66
B	0	10
C	0	14
D	0	42
E	0	13
F	0	6
G	1	40
H	2	68
I	0	17
J	2	26
K	0	108
L	0	25
M	0	0
N	0	5
O	0	0
P	0	12
Q	0	93
R	1	25
S	0	22
T	0	2
U	1	8
V	0	38

2015/2016 School Year

School Name	Number of Expulsions	Number of Suspensions
A	2	57
B	1	21
C	3	23
D	0	23
E	0	12
F	0	13
G	0	61
H	0	82
I	0	23
J	0	30
K	0	93
L	0	19
M	0	0
N	0	4
O	0	1
P	0	16
Q	0	20
R	1	66
S	0	20
T	0	0
U	0	25
V	0	28

The following table presents data submitted to date during the 2016/2017 academic year.

School Name	Number of Expulsions	Number of Suspensions
A	0	49
B	0	0
C	0	0
D	0	0
E	0	11
F	0	0
G	0	46
H	0	30
I	0	0
J	0	0
K	0	38
L	1	40
M	0	0
N	0	0
O	0	0
P	0	0
Q	0	20
R	0	17
S	0	28
T	0	0
U	0	0
V	0	0

School Expulsions

Ceisteanna (1918)

James Browne

Ceist:

1918. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the average number of suspensions and expulsions from secondary schools in each of the years 2014 to 2016 and to date in 2017. [27197/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the following table.

Average number of Suspensions and Expulsions in all Schools:

2014/2015

Suspensions: 3.5

Expulsions: 0.03

2015/2016

Suspensions: 4

Expulsions: 0.05

2016/2017 to date (09/06/17)

Suspensions: 1

Expulsions: 0.01

Early Childhood Care and Education Data

Ceisteanna (1919)

Kathleen Funchion

Ceist:

1919. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the cost of extending the ECCE scheme to 48 weeks. [27210/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

The cost of extending the ECCE programme to 48 weeks at present rates would be €87m per year. It should be noted that this question only addresses the financial aspect of such increases. Any such changes would require revision of rules around eligibility and enrolment dates and would need to look at issues of capacity with regard to physical space, staffing capacities and other associated matters.

The actual cost of this proposal would be subject to a number of factors including actual levels of participation, and the number of children subvented at the 'higher capitation' rate - costs increase as the number of higher qualified staff increase.

Commencement of Legislation

Ceisteanna (1920)

Thomas Pringle

Ceist:

1920. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs when the Children First Act 2015 will be fully commenced; the planning which has been carried out to date in 2017 to ensure its provisions are fully implemented and resourced; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27295/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

Since the Children First Act 2015 was signed into law on 19 November 2015, a number of provisions of the Act have already been commenced as follows:

(i) Sections 1 to 5 (Part I) and section 28 (Part V) of the Act were commenced on 10 December 2015. Sections 1 to 5 are standard provisions in relation to title, citation, regulations, definitions etc. Section 28 relates to corporal punishment and removes the common law defence of reasonable chastisement in relation to same.

(ii) Section 18 (Part III) and Sections 20-26 (Part IV) were commenced on 1 May 2016. Section 18 of the Act is a technical amendment to ensure that the Child and Family Agency is a specified body for purposes of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012. Sections 20-26 deal with establishing the Children First Interdepartmental Implementation Group (CFIDIG) on a statutory basis and expanding the Group to include all Government Departments.

As the Act imposes obligations on certain individuals working with children and on relevant service providers, I think it is vital that all individuals and sectors are fully prepared and ready to implement the legislation before it is commenced. Therefore, in relation to those provisions of the Act which have not yet been commenced, I have signed off on a proposal for phased and structured preparations for implementation which will allow for full commencement of the Act by December, 2017. These provisions include those related to mandated reporting of child abuse, mandated assisting and the preparation of Child Safeguarding Statements by organisations providing relevant services to children.

The phased implementation timetable will also allow Tusla to undertake the significant preparatory work required to enable it to fully meet its obligations under the legislation. This will include ensuring that the appropriate internal systems are in place to deal with the intake of mandatory reports by Tusla and that a suite of resources is available to support and assist all sectors in implementing the legislation. My Department is working closely with Tusla in relation to making available basic Children First training, information and resource materials.

In the meantime, my Department will continue to work closely with the Statutory Children First Inter-Departmental Implementation Group, which includes Tusla, an Garda Síochána and the HSE, who will take a key role in ensuring that all necessary preparations and supports are in place for those who will acquire legal obligations under the Act.

Early Childhood Care and Education Funding

Ceisteanna (1921)

Kathleen Funchion

Ceist:

1921. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her Department's estimated hourly running cost for the early childhood care and education scheme and the hourly running cost of early years care for those under three years of age in services for both cohorts of children. [27385/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

The capitation rates paid by my Department for the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme are €64.50 per week for the standard capitation and €75 per week for the higher capitation. These payments provide for 15 hours per week of early childhood care and education. The hourly running costs for the Programme are therefore €4.30 per hour at standard rate and €5 per hour at higher rate.

The hourly running costs of early years services were estimated as part of the preparation of the 2016 policy paper on the Affordable Childcare Scheme. These estimates were prepared on the basis of the data available at that time. It was estimated that the average hourly running cost was €4.67 per child per hour. Given the variation in required adult-child ratios by the age of the child, this figure translated into estimated hourly running costs of €4.76 per hour for 2 year olds, €5.37 per hour for 1 year olds, and €7.81 per hour for children less than 1 year old. Running costs for children over 3 years old were estimated to be lower.

The policy paper noted that these hourly running costs differ from the implicit hourly cost of the ECCE Programme as the ECCE capitation rates reflect the different adult-child ratio (1:11) permitted for sessional pre-school services as well as the incentivisation of graduate employment within the ECCE Programme.

My Department will shortly be commissioning an independent review of the cost of delivering quality childcare, which will provide up-to-date and more comprehensive information in relation to the costs of delivering early years care and education.

Early Childhood Care and Education Funding

Ceisteanna (1922)

Kathleen Funchion

Ceist:

1922. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the estimated cost of the early childhood care and education scheme over a 48-week period at a higher amount of €12 for both higher and lower capitation rates. [27386/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

The total cost for a calendar year for increasing both the lower and higher capitation rates for ECCE would be €427m which is an increase of €150m. It should be noted that this question only addresses the financial aspect of such increases. Any changes would also require revision of the rules around eligibility and enrolment dates and would also need to look at issues of capacity with regard to physical space, staffing capacities and other associated matters.

It should be noted that the actual cost of this proposal would be subject to a number of factors including actual levels of participation, and the number of children subvented at the 'higher capitation' rate costs increase as the number of higher qualified staff increase.

Early Childhood Care and Education Funding

Ceisteanna (1923)

Kathleen Funchion

Ceist:

1923. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the estimated cost of introducing a capitation rate of €12 to early years services for all babies under three years of age over a 48 week period. [27387/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

I am pleased to be able to inform the Deputy that an extension to the existing CCS scheme being introduced in September this year will see a payment of up to €20.00 per week per child being introduced over a 52 week period. It is anticipated that some 33,000 children may benefit from this new measure.

In the event of full uptake of this new measure the annual cost will be €34.32m. The equivalent cost of the measure as set out by the Deputy would be €19.01m per annum

Early Childhood Care and Education Data

Ceisteanna (1924)

Kathleen Funchion

Ceist:

1924. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of children availing of the targeted subsidy within the affordable child care scheme, ACS, aged between six months and three years of age by amount (details supplied). [27438/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

The Affordable Childcare Scheme (ACS) which will commence at the earliest possible date, will include both universal and targeted elements. It is currently estimated that when the scheme is initially introduced approximately 16,000 children aged between 6 months and 3 years of age will benefit from targeted subsidies within the ACS.

Of the total number of children who benefit from targeted subsidies within the ACS, it is estimated that approximately 21% will benefit from the maximum subsidy rates available within the scheme, which will be awarded to families with net incomes below €22,700 per annum. The maximum subsidy rates will vary by the age of the child, and will range from €5.11 per hour for children less than 1 year old to €3.76 per hour for school-age children. The maximum subsidy available for any child under the scheme will be €5.11 per hour. The minimum subsidy under the targeted portion of the scheme for children aged between 6 months and 3 years will be €0.50 per hour. This minimum subsidy-rate will apply to families with a net income of €47,500 per annum.

As the tapers that will be applied to the subsidy rate (for families with incomes between the ACS base and maximum income thresholds) will be smooth, and will not take the form of subsidy bands, it is not possible to identify the number who may benefit from a specific amount of subsidy that lies between the minimum and maximum levels.

On 11 April, I made an announcement that since the ACS would not commence this September a range of measures will be introduced by my Department to make childcare more affordable for thousands of families throughout Ireland. I can confirm that the following measures will commence this September;

- A new universal subsidy will be available for all children aged between 6 months and 3 years of age (or until they are eligible for ECCE e.g. 3 years 3 months) in registered childcare. This will amount to as much as €80 a month or €1,000 per year for children in full time childcare.

- Subsidies provided under existing childcare schemes, specifically the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and Training and Employment Childcare (TEC) Schemes will be increased significantly, in some cases by as much as 50%. To illustrate the effect of this increase, the highest subsidy provided under the CCS scheme for full time childcare in 2016 was €95 per week. This will increase to €145 per week from September. This should decrease the co-payment required by families who qualify and therefore make childcare more accessible and affordable to these families; assisting them in their return to training and employment and lifting them out of poverty.

A dedicated website (http://affordablechildcare.ie/) was launched at the end of May with information for parents to inform them of the various enhanced childcare supports they may qualify for this September. This site has already amassed nearly 100,000 page views from over 26,000 users nationwide as well as internationally. Nearly 80% of these are new users to the website. The majority of these hits (over 50%) have come directly to the site with over 25% coming from social media sharing. A campaign via various media, including digital and radio, is underway which will also raise awareness among parents. Finally, my Department is hosting information events for childcare providers throughout the country over the month of June in preparation for the changes coming in September.

Community Childcare Subvention Programme

Ceisteanna (1925)

Kathleen Funchion

Ceist:

1925. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the full year cost of the targeted portion of the affordable child care in each of the years 2015, 2016 and 2017. [27439/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

The full-year cost of the targeted schemes (Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and the Training and Employment Childcare (TEC) Scheme) was €61 million in 2015, and €58 million in 2016.

For 2017 an additional budget of €19 million was secured, to provide for both a new universal subsidy and increased targeted subsidies through the introduction of the ACS. While the start-date for the ACS has been delayed and the scheme will not start in September 2017, the new universal subsidy and the increased targeted subsidies will be introduced in September through the existing childcare schemes (CCS and TEC). Of this additional funding, approximately €7 million is expected to be spent on the universal subsidy from September.

The ACS will commence at the earliest possible date. It is estimated that the full-year cost of the ACS will be approximately €150 million, of which it is estimated that the targeted portion of the scheme will account for approximately €132 million.

Departmental Contracts

Ceisteanna (1926)

Mick Wallace

Ceist:

1926. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the contracts awarded to a company (details supplied) per annum since March 2011, in tabular form by her Department or any agency or body under the aegis of her Department; the cost per contract; the basis for each contract; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27447/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

My Department did not enter into any contractual arrangements with the company mentioned by the Deputy. Use of that particular company by any of the bodies under the aegis of my Department is an operational matter and I have requested each agency to respond directly to the Deputy in the matter.

The referred replies under Standing Order 42A were forwarded to the Deputy.

Child Protection

Ceisteanna (1927, 1928, 1930)

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1927. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on whether legislation is required to give Tusla a statutory duty to protect the welfare of children living in emergency accommodation, especially in hotel and bed and breakfast accommodation. [27464/17]

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1928. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will request Tusla to develop statutory or non-statutory guidelines in respect of the length of time that households with children can be permitted to be temporarily housed by local authorities in hotel and bed and breakfast accommodation; and if not, the reason she is of the view these are not required. [27465/17]

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1930. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on whether legislation is needed that would place a statutory obligation on Tusla to put measures in place that explicitly promote the welfare of children living in emergency homeless accommodation and require the agency to put in place in-reach teams to facilitate children's access to education and social services and to be tasked with the improvement of child welfare; and if her attention has been drawn to the fact that Tusla has no obligation in this regard and it is most frequently left to approved housing bodies to provide social support services to families living in emergency accommodation. [27467/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1927, 1928 and 1930 together.

Tusla, under the Child and Family Agency Act 2013 and the Child Care Act 1991 has a statutory obligation to support and promote the development, welfare and protection of children, including providing for the protection and care of children in circumstances where their parents have not given, or are unlikely to be able to give, adequate protection and care. This obligation applies to all children in the State - regardless of their accommodation status.

It is important to note that Tusla only intervenes in family life in exceptional circumstances. Children who are with their families in emergency accommodation remain in the care of their parents or guardians. A child, irrespective of accommodation status, who comes to the attention of Tusla will, where the appropriate threshold has been reached, have an assessment carried out by a social worker. Where Tusla has concerns regarding the welfare and development of a child, due to parenting difficulties or adverse environmental factors, they will provide family supports to assist the family and child. Ongoing monitoring will form part of the response by Tusla where it is required. In addition, referrals to other services e.g. mental health services, will be made where appropriate.

As part of a whole-Government approach to homelessness, my Department is working closely with Tusla to provide supports for families in emergency accommodation in order to mitigate the challenges faced by parents and children in this situation. Of course, while Tusla has a role to play in this, it is not for that agency to determine by guidance or otherwise how long a family should be provided with emergency accommodation. Such matters are the statutory responsibility of the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government and Local Authorities.

As the Deputy is aware, Tusla has agreed a joint protocol with the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive (DRHE). This covers child welfare and protection matters for children in emergency accommodation. It is fully operational in the DRHE areas and it is intended to extend it to Galway, Limerick and Cork this year. Enhanced National Quality Standards for Homeless Services, including a child welfare component, are currently being developed by the Dublin Region Homeless Executive on behalf of all local authorities. A national advisory group has been in place since 2014 with representation from non-governmental homelessness service providers, the Health Service Executive, Tusla and others, as well as the housing authorities. Draft standards were piloted in services in four of the nine homeless regions during 2016 and it is expected that they will be implemented nationally in the coming months. This will, over time, enhance the quality of homeless service provision.

Tusla also funds child support workers and has appointed a Homelessness Liaison Officer. My Department is providing free childcare for homeless children in the Dublin area for up to 25 hours a week. The Family Resource Centres are working with people who are experiencing homelessness and many have already developed local responses to the needs of families in emergency accommodation. These include, by way of example, family fun days, homework support, after school programmes, play therapy and transport services. Tusla will be developing a reporting mechanism this year to record the extent of homeless work in the Family Resource Centres.

In recognition of the difficulties associated with homelessness and school attendance, the Educational Welfare Office offers a number of supports to children and their families. The DRHE has also arranged Leap cards for homeless families in Dublin to facilitate family days out and for school journeys.

Ultimately, my concern is that we minimise and then eliminate the problem of homelessess. In the meantime, I will continue to support measures to help those affected, to the greatest degree possible within my area of responsibility.

Child Safety

Ceisteanna (1929)

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1929. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if Tusla collects performance statistics on each local authority recording the length of time children are being housed in emergency accommodation, each household's access to an in-reach team that facilitates children's access to education and social services and the household's access to persons tasked with the improvement of child welfare; and, if not, the reason therefor. [27466/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

As these are operational matters, I have asked Tusla – The Child and Family Agency to respond directly to the Deputy with the most up-to-date information.

Question No. 1930 answered with Question No. 1927.

Child Care Services Funding

Ceisteanna (1931)

Billy Kelleher

Ceist:

1931. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the budgetary arrangement which has been made for vulnerable one to three year olds in community early years services for 2018; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27685/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

In the first instance I am pleased to be able to inform the Deputy that an extension to the existing CCS scheme being introduced in September this year will see a payment of €20.00 per week per child being introduced over a 52 week period. It is anticipated that some 33,000 children may benefit from this new measure.

Further, I am aware that the 0-3 age group presents particular issues for early years service providers. In an effort to better understand the range of issues being faced I have asked a sub-group of the Early Years Forum to examine the evidence in this regard and to consider appropriate measures to alleviate any identified sustainability issues. This group has met on a number of occasions and is due to report back to me and the Early Years Forum in the coming weeks. It is my intention that the outcome of the group's work will inform my Department's consideration of the forthcoming Estimates and budgetary process for 2018 as necessary.

Departmental Expenditure

Ceisteanna (1932)

Robert Troy

Ceist:

1932. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the amount her Department or a body under its aegis has paid to a company (details supplied) for advice, the use of intellectual property and other services. [27704/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

My Department did not enter into any contractual arrangements with the company for the provision of services. Use of that particular company by any of the bodies under the aegis of my Department is an operational matter and I have requested each agency to respond directly to the Deputy in the matter.

The referred replies under Standing Order 42A.were forwarded to the Deputy.

Departmental Functions

Ceisteanna (1933)

Brendan Griffin

Ceist:

1933. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if assistance will be provided to a person (detail supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27828/17]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

I have arranged for an official of my Department to contact the Deputy in order to ascertain what assistance can be afforded to the individual concerned.