Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Many of the questions focused on section A, although some of my answers will cut across the questions. If I do not answer any of the questions, I ask Deputies to come back to me.

In general, many of the questions raised by Deputy Lisa Chambers will be answered in the Tusla business plan, which will be published on Friday, 10 March. Extensive discussions at official level and my ministerial performance statement have helped in the development of the 2017 business plan and the priorities I have identified will guide the plan. As I indicated, I met the chair, chief executive officer and board of Tusla. In 2017, Tusla expenditure will focus on a number of areas. This is the second year in a three-year initiative to tackle the issue of child protection cases awaiting allocation to a social worker. I will address the specific question on social work recruitment targets in a moment. The additional funding provided will allow Tusla to continue its challenging programme of recruiting social workers.

Tusla will continue its preparatory work in advance of the introduction of mandatory reporting under the Children First Act. Adoption is also part of its plan to ensure it is in a position to implement the provisions of the Adoption (Amendment) Bill, which we are about to complete, and the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill, Second Stage of which will begin in the Seanad later this month. There will also be a focus on aftercare to ensure Tusla meets its statutory obligation in respect of children leaving care and aftercare supports.

I will discuss a number of other aspects of the plan if Deputies wish. However, I would like to address more specifically the ongoing issue of Tusla's social work recruitment targets. In September 2015, Tusla published its three-year plan, From Survival to Sustainability, which estimated that 268 additional social workers or 1,627 whole-time equivalent social workers were needed to address the unallocated cases during the timeframe of the plan. With only 250 social workers graduating each year, the labour market is highly competitive. I have directed my officials to contact CORU and the Higher Education Authority to discuss the number of social workers graduating and how it can be increased. However, it will be some time before an increase in graduate numbers is achieved.

Tusla has taken a proactive approach to recruitment, including recruiting social workers outside the jurisdiction. The organisation currently has 1,467 whole-time equivalent social workers and the end target for 2017 is 1,520. This target is short of the target set in From Survival to Sustainability by approximately 100 whole-time equivalent social workers, which reflects the constraints in labour supply. Tusla will continue to prioritise the recruitment of an additional 100 family support practitioners, 166 social care staff and 125 administrative staff to allow social workers to focus on their care work with children and their families.

Deputy Lisa Chambers asked a question about pay in Tusla. The allocation for 2017 is approximately €217 million or 38% of overall expenditure.

Recruitment is directly related to the issue of unallocated cases. Deputies will be aware that the Tusla chief executive officer recently stated that the recruitment of social workers was ongoing.

The funding is in place to achieve the recruitment. The recruitment environment is proving to be challenging.

On its impact in regard to unallocated cases, when Tusla was set up there were almost 10,000 unallocated cases. This was reduced to 5,413 at the end of 2016, which is a 20% reduction in 2016 alone. Of the 5,413 unallocated cases, 801 of them were classified as high priority, 3,262 medium priority and 1,350 of low priority. One of the points I would like to particularly communicate here too today is that there was a downward trend in the numbers of unallocated cases from the beginning of 2016 to October last but that was reversed at the end of the year. The number of unallocated cases increased then by over 1,100 in the final two months. Tusla has advised me that this was due to challenges in the area of social work recruitment.

The question on the Oberstown Children Detention Campus was whether the moneys allow for the completion of the repair works. The capital allocation of €3.25 million includes funding provision for a range of remedial and improvement works that were identified - I also noted the need for some of these in my visits to the campus, and I note the committee visited there too - as being required following a period of operation of new facilities and several incidents, such as damage to the new and previously existing facilities by the young people. Two of the previously existing units are due to come back into operation in March of 2017 following remedial works and the demolition of a third unit, which was severely damaged by the fire. Other works have commenced and will be replicated in all of the residential units across the campus during 2017. The full cost of all of these works has yet to be established as there are some ongoing design elements involved, including the identification of alternative door design. In my first visit to Oberstown, the issue of doors, and how to design them in a way that is appropriate, both for the living environment of the young people who are there but also to provide the security that is require, continues to be challenging, not only nationally but also internationally.

I will address the capital investment in child care that Deputy Ó Laoghaire raised. Needless to say, capital investment will be required. We all would agree with that. As the affordable scheme is rolled out and more families avail of high quality affordable child care, I will soon announce €3 million in capital funding for early years in 2017. On Monday last, I announced €4 million in capital funding for school-age child care. I will seek more investment next year and beyond.

In regard to the capital carryover from 2016, the school-age child care capital funding was not spent in 2016. That is because the Department was finalising an action plan with the Department of Education and Skills in that regard. I am delighted to have launched that school-age child care action plan this week and the associated €3 million capital scheme to increase the number of high quality after school places as well. There was also an underspend in the youth requirements but I can assure the Deputy that will be spent in 2017.

Deputy Lisa Chambers asked a question about the administration. Was it in regard to the Department itself?