Maura Hopkins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the witnesses for their presentations today. There has been much discussion around the involvement of schools. My first question relates to the Creative Ireland programme which runs from 2017 to 2022. It is encouraging for all of us that we are trying to involve young people. Participation within schools is positive. The witnesses mentioned the pilot scheme in which 150 schools are participating and the access to extra resources that they will have. I am quite encouraged by the questions that were asked about evaluation. This is a short-term programme. How do we see the evaluation being used to ensure that everybody gets access in terms of inspiring their creativity? That is in conjunction with the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. I am concerned that while a pilot project is good, we need a longer-term and more tangible vision for arts within schools.

On the budget for 2018, much work has been done by Creative Ireland in Roscommon, particularly with libraries. There is much more communication and participation within the arts centre in Roscommon which is positive. It goes back to the word "evaluation". A sum of €2 million was given to local authorities in the 2018 budget. How is that being evaluated? I am aware this is embedded within strategies but strategies do not give us evidence that work has taken place to support people across a particular county or local authority area. How is that €2 million being evaluated to ensure that there is value for money - I do not even mean it in that context - and that it reaches out to as wide a group of people as possible within a particular local authority?