Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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8. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on the levels of recruitment and retention of social workers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22308/17]

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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32. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of social workers that have been recruited since 1 January 2017 in view of the severe shortage in social workers for children; if she expects to achieve her aim of 200 new social workers by the end of 2017; if not, the reasons for the shortfall; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22175/17]

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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To an extent, this question relates to Deputy Jan O'Sullivan's priority question and Deputy Anne Rabbitte's question. It is an issue that has been raised on a regular basis. It relates to the coverage of social workers. It is also particularly worth commenting on not only the levels of recruitment but also the issue of retention which I think is something of a difficulty for Tusla.

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 and 32 together.

The most recent recruitment and staff data from Tusla is for February and March 2017. At the end of February, Tusla had recruited 56 new social workers and this equates to a net increase of 28 whole-time equivalent social workers in March when attrition and flexible working arrangements are taken into account.

To date, Tusla is on track to achieve its recruitment target of 62 additional social workers, which will require a gross recruitment of 180 social workers in 2017 to take account of normal attrition rates.

In the context of retention, in the 12 months to February 2017, Tusla had a social work turnover rate of 8.4%. This compares favourably with other jurisdictions such as England where the 2016 turnover rate was approximately 15%. Tusla’s 2017 business plan identifies activities to improve retention and build on initiatives commenced in 2016 such as the introduction of the Tusla’s national transfer policy, to which I have already referred, and the implementation of Tusla’s continuing professional development strategy.

In addition, the introduction of senior social worker practitioner posts designated to social work teams around the country will further assist with retention by providing enhanced professional support to social work staff.

Tusla Recruit will undertake a recruitment drive during 2017 to assist with the implementation of this initiative.

Recruitment of social workers is challenging, with only 200 to 250 graduating per year in a very competitive labour market. I am therefore mindful of the need to link recruitment with decisions on Tusla's operational side to effect improvements. As part of my regular engagement with the board, I have requested that the agency provide an assessment of recruitment for the remainder of 2017 linked to specific targets to reduce the number of children awaiting allocation of a dedicated social worker.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister referred to comparable jurisdictions such as the UK. The UK is starting from a much higher threshold in any event but it is also a place where the Tory Government is absolutely demolishing local authorities. Consequently, social services and social workers are among the first on the front line. To be performing favourably in comparison to Britain is, therefore, not a great claim.

The inadequate number of social workers has been a matter for discussion for quite some time, and I do not believe that the retention figures are particularly favourable. My figures show that, on average, 150 social workers per year are being lost, which is quite a high rate of attrition, that the net increase for 2016 was a mere 56 and that the projected net gain for social workers for this year is 62. These are very high numbers. The national review panel has been in the news in recent days. A case whereby a young person died by suicide was one of the high-priority unallocated cases, and a number of other cases reported upon highlighted related gaps and weaknesses. We are clearly very far behind where we should be. There are three times as many social workers to support children in the North than in the South. If the current attrition rates continue, it will be very difficult to achieve the targets Tusla is aiming for.

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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I am deeply concerned about this issue, as is the Deputy, and I am aware of the figures he is citing. In addition to what I have already said, I have provided Tusla with the necessary funding to recruit additional staff in 2017 - an increase of €37 million in 2017 alone - building on significant funding increases in previous years. In addition to what I have already said about my efforts to work with Tusla to ensure recruitment and retention, I formally meet the chair and the board of Tusla each quarter. After my most recent meeting with the chair in April, I took the opportunity to write to her to reiterate my concerns about the issues of unallocated cases and recruitment and the correlation between them. I am very mindful of the need for Tusla to closely link its recruitment programme with operational decisions and I have requested Tusla to provide me with a current assessment of planned recruitment to year end. In addition, I have requested that Tusla develop a robust workforce plan that addresses succession planning, retention, career pathways, training and development, future workforce needs, priority gaps and a strategy for tackling the priority gaps and reducing unallocated cases. In that context, I will meet with Tusla again on 18 May to discuss unallocated cases and recruitment plans.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I welcome that the Minister has written to Tusla about this and that funding is available. It is becoming increasingly clear that it is not simply a question of funding, although funding is crucial. The difficulty in retention seems, in large part, to be due to the fact not only that the work is traumatic, difficult and challenging, but also that social workers are dealing with extraordinary caseloads and that the related stress is making it very difficult to retain social workers. Therefore, imaginative solutions will be required. However, perhaps there is an element of Tusla's own management and support for the social workers needing to be improved.

My understanding is that the plans to introduce mandatory reporting of child abuse and neglect have been delayed until later this year, which is, I believe, a year later than initially planned. Is this simply due to the difficulty in retaining social workers and having adequate resources, or is there a change in policy? Is the Government still committed to implementing the policy?

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I wish to ask a related question. The independent review panel also pointed to a gulf between health services and social work teams as being an issue. Obviously, many of these young people will have mental health issues and other issues, which is an important element as well. Will the Minister engage with the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, and others in the Department of Health in this regard?

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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We are working on a protocol regarding mental health with the Department of Health and Tusla. We successfully negotiated a protocol of working together with the HSE and Tusla on disability services and this is what the group that gathered to do that is doing and focusing on now.

To respond to Deputy Ó Laoghaire, it is clearly not just a matter of money - I acknowledge that. I am just pointing out, though, that I did get the money and the money is there. We do need imaginative solutions, as Deputy Ó Laoghaire said. For example, I referred already to the fact approximately 215 social workers graduate each year. That is the context in which we are working. I appreciate that it is challenging, and Tusla of course is competing with the rest of the pool, but I intend personally to consult with the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, to explore options for increasing the supply of graduates. My officials are discussing with the Higher Education Authority and Health and Social Care Professionals Council, CORU, how to increase the supply of social workers in a sustainable manner once Tusla's workforce plan and priority gaps are identified. Some of these solutions are not immediate but we are trying to put in place, looking forward to the medium term and even the long term, that educational element in particular so that we can begin to increase the number of social workers to the levels required and sustain that number.