Ms Oonagh Fleming:

There were a few questions about CE schemes. Deputy Rabbitte asked if linking CE schemes and community child care was akin to putting on sellotape. I suppose one must put things into the cultural context at the time. Community employment schemes provided placements for people in order for them to get a genuine employment experience, whatever that was, such as building walls or being a caretaker. It was not exclusive to child care. We have certain pockets of the country where CE schemes were more prevalent than others and the way they were implemented is not the same everywhere. In some places CE participants were never included in the adult to child ratios in early years services whereas in other areas they were. What we discovered is that although there were high numbers of CE workers in lots of services they were not always required to meet the ratios. They were there in a support fashion and that is still the case but they still have gainful participation in the community child care setting.

The Department of Social Protection specifically changed the scheme for child care just over three years ago to create a three-year scheme which allows CE workers to advance their career. I am not sure whether it was Senator Devine or Senator Freeman who expressed concern in that regard. Participants have two years to get their child care qualification and a further year to enhance their employability by getting a full year's placement within a child care service. The first three-year scheme is complete and now there should be some roll-over whereby there are some fully qualified CE participants in a worthwhile placement in a child care setting meeting the requirements while others are in training. That is the way it is at the moment. I do not think it was a case of sellotape but providing placements for CE participants.