Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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6. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if the school completion programme will be continued in 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43978/14]

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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In 2002 the school completion programme was initiated with the intention of supporting vulnerable children at primary and post-primary levels. One of the particular objectives was to ensure their successful participation in the education system and their retention therein. My question seeks to ascertain the Minister’s commitment, as a new Minister in the Department, to continuing the programme in 2015, given that it has been subsumed into Tusla.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The school completion programme aims to retain young people in the formal education system to the completion of senior cycle and generally improve the school attendance, participation and retention of young people at risk of educational disadvantage. The programme is a targeted intervention aimed at school communities identified through the Department of Education and Skills’ delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, action plan for educational inclusion. It provides targeted supports for 36,000 children.

Since 1 January 2014, the Child and Family Agency has had operational responsibility for the school completion programme, including the allocation of funds to local projects. In 2014 an allocation of €24.756 million has been provided for the school completion programme. The agency has approved local projects' school retention plans for the 2014-15 academic year. The first instalment of funding has issued to local projects and further instalments will issue in December 2014 and May 2015.

The Estimate for the agency for 2015 is €635 million, a 4.3% increase on its 2014 allocation. In December, the Department will issue a performance statement under section 45 of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013. This will include my priorities for consideration in the development of the 2015 plan. This business plan will set out the agency's proposed activities, programmes and priorities for 2015 in light of the moneys available.

A review of the school completion programme has commenced. It is being carried out by the ESRI following a procurement process managed by the agency. The programme has been in operation since 2002 and I believe it is timely that a review be carried out. The review is an important initiative to plan for the future development of the programme. It is envisaged that the review will be completed during the 2014-2015 academic year.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The importance of this programme cannot be underestimated, and every public representative in the House sees its value. The programme works in 82 clusters of schools throughout the country, with 229 primary schools and 112 post-primary schools participating. The value of the programme, in so far as it is active, engages families in the community and has an inter-agency approach, cannot be undermined.

In 2011, in the midst of the crisis, the programme had a budget of €30 million. At present its budget is €24.75 million, as the Minister stated. Will he give us a commitment that the funding for the school completion programme will be ring-fenced and will not be raided by Tusla in the way the HSE raided many other dedicated budgets in the past?

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Many of the people who work in the Child and Family Agency came from the HSE, where they did sterling work. Tusla is a new agency independent of the HSE. It has many working relationships with it, particularly in services such as psychology. I remind the Deputy of what I stated: that the review is an important initiative to plan for the future development of the programme. The programme is critical for young people at risk of falling out of education. As I stated, everybody knows that people who finish their education do better in terms of employment and income, and it has many other benefits which sometimes help break the inter-generational poverty trap into which people have fallen. My commitment to the programme is absolute and there is no question but that it will continue and that it is a top priority for me. I believe in its importance, as the Deputy outlined.

Tusla will have to submit its corporate plan, a draft of which I have, and I will make my findings known to it very shortly. The Tusla budget has increased this year; therefore, there is absolutely no rationale for a reduction in this particular programme.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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Will we see an increase in the school completion budget this year, which is what we need given the increasing number of children in the system, the increasing complexities with which those in the school completion programme must deal, and the fact that the Government has slashed the guidance service available to schools throughout the country? In recent weeks I visited a disadvantaged school and met one guidance counsellor trying to cope with more than 800 students. The availability of a school completion programme in locations such as this is absolutely essential. More than anyone, the Minister realises the importance of preventing problems. He is quite correct to state that if the school completion programme can operate effectively it prevents people from falling into various categories which later cost the State a huge amount to deal with. Will the Minister give us a commitment to ring-fence funding for the school completion programme and increase it in line with Tusla's budgetary increases?

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy spoke about the slashing of services which has occurred in recent years since the Government took office and found not only that the coffers were empty but that there were large bills in every cubbyhole-----

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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That is redundant old rubbish at this stage.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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It is not. The facts do not change just because they are uncomfortable. As an old lady once said to me, the truth is not fragile; it will not break. The truth is that we know why we had to do what we had to do.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The truth is that you are in office, so deal with the problem.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The truth of the matter is that our economy is recovering due to the sacrifices made by the Irish people and the policies pursued by the Government. We now have, for the first time in several years, a budget which has increased. I will ensure the school completion programme is protected. I want to see it enhanced. The review to which I alluded is critical because many times - I do not just blame the previous Government but successive governments - policies which appeared to be well-intentioned and sought better outcomes transpired not to deliver these. We must continually review what we do to inform ourselves that what we are doing is delivering what we seek.