Mr. Andy Pike:

Fórsa believes that provision for disadvantaged children is very fragmented. It relies, in part, on goodwill. We would like to see a strategy developed that draws together all the different agencies and actors who are trying to assist children and to put it on a statutory footing. At the moment, there is a school completion programme across the country that is very active in term of organising breakfast clubs, and assisting students with staying in education. Tusla is trying to assist students from disadvantaged families where there is a welfare issue, and there are also various different activities that schools promote. Local development companies in the community run Traveller education and health programmes, but the degree to which all of these elements are integrated is a concern. There is a lot of assistance being given, but we would like to see far more integration and a proper funding stream to get supports organised in a consistent way across the country.