Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I note the final point and I will pass on to those involved in Bringing It All Back Home the fact they can approach the local children's services committee. It is a pity the conference is in May because that is almost too late to ensure the continuation of services, especially if two of the projects finish in April. The only people who will suffer if there is a halt to the continuation of services are the children and parents who are identified as high risk. There is also a possibility we will lose the expertise that has been built up not only in this area but, I presume, in the other four areas, although I do not know anything about how those projects worked. In Inchicore, the service providers, including the HSE and the officials from the Department of Education and Skills, are satisfied with the way things are working. In some ways they are afraid of what will happen when they no longer meet on an inter-agency basis, as has been the case to date.

Some 40 families are engaged with Bringing It All Back Home. I hope there will be some way to ensure there is no gap in the support they get at a time when they are, for once, engaging with a service. A frightening figure came out when I met them. They put it to me that part of the catchment area has in percentage terms the highest number of children going into care. These are the clientele with whom the services are working. If these children end up in care now, there will be additional costs to the State, whereas this type of service reduces costs.

The service costs €120,000. I realise every penny counts for such a service. I do not intend to quote from the report but I refer the Minister to page ten in which the evaluation is specific about planning for the future. It is in line with everything the Minister has been saying in terms of services. The best approach involves working on an inter-agency basis. If anything emerges from the conference in May, it should include a recommendation to continue until the Child and Family Agency is fully bedded down and in tune with the services it can fully deliver.

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