Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

After listening to the Minister's reply, one would nearly believe that Tusla is whiter than white with the amount of funding it gives to family resource centres. It is not the first time I have put down this question but rather the second. The reason I put down this question is because family resource centres are stretched to capacity. By and large, most family resource centres have approximately two key workers. The Minister is right. Funding covers salaries and a bit of capital. Most centres do not have a development worker. They provide valuable resources to families in need, particularly in respect of counselling services for children.

An example is Gort family resource centre, where they are helping with the undocumented. They need three times the amount of staff to deal with what is being presented. They are carrying out the role of the community welfare officer also. When is the Minister going to allocate funding to support the development workers that are required on the ground and to deliver a good service and support to Tusla?

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