Results 20,301-20,320 of 21,128 for speaker:James Reilly

Other Questions: Child Protection Services (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: In respect of the various situations the Deputy has outlined there would be a range of services available. In particular schools there is access to counselling services. There is the child and adolescent mental health service, CAMHS. There are youth clubs with mental health facilities provided by Jigsaw, which is very early intervention. It is run in such a way that young people can go in...

Other Questions: Child Protection Services (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: In many instances, the supports would benefit from improvement. That is the Government plan and that is why additional resources are going into this area. As the population grows, there will be a need for more investment in this area. I would not stand here and say that everything is perfect in the services. They are far from perfect. We have come through the worst recession the...

Other Questions: Children in Care (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: The Child and Family Agency, Tusla, has a statutory duty under the Child Care Act 1991 to promote the welfare of children who are not receiving adequate care and protection and, if necessary, to receive a child into the care of the State. Data published in recent years indicate that the numbers of children entering care has been decreasing while the overall number has increased due to...

Other Questions: Children in Care (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: I pointed out that 92% of children in the care of the State are in foster families. That is way above international norms and reflects extremely well on the service. Like the Deputy, I thank the many who volunteer to be foster parents and who give homes to children. It is a reflection on the quality of that care that many of the children leave school and go to third level, and that many...

Other Questions: Children in Care (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: I absolutely agree with the Deputy. We all are aware of the terrible tragedies that occurred in more recent years where children, having left care, seemed to fall off a cliff with no supports and with tragic consequences for some. That is why we brought in the after-care Act. It is now a statutory right that any child who has been in care for longer than a year, from the age of 13 upwards,...

Other Questions: Child Care Services Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: Last year, I established an interdepartmental group to consider options for future investment in early years and after school child care. This group reported to the Government last July, setting out a range of options for future investment to enhance the affordability, increase the accessibility and improve the quality of early years and after school child care. In the 2016 budget, the...

Other Questions: Child Care Services Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: I am glad the Deputy raised the issue of where I might have been on the night she was entertaining a certain gentleman.

Other Questions: Child Care Services Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: I was in Fingal County Council celebrating with the six young women from Loreto Secondary School in Balbriggan who had such an outstanding achievement in the Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition. We should be very proud of these young women. They showed the power of the diversity of our community and the future we all have, which we can face with confidence.

Other Questions: Child Care Services Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: The additional funding also provides for a range of measures to improve the provision of after school child care, including a once-off minor capital fund to develop after school services in conjunction with community, not-for-profit and private providers. The Government is committed to child care and children.

Other Questions: Child Care Services Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: The Government has shown its commitment by increasing the child care budget by one third. While we would love to do more, even if we had more money the sector has highlighted that there are capacity issues, and that is why we have done it in a staged and staggered fashion. We want affordable and accessible child care, and we want quality child care. I will not engage in an ideological...

Other Questions: Emergency Accommodation Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: On 14 January, I led the delegation at Ireland’s examination in Geneva by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, regarding Ireland’s consolidated 3rd and 4th periodic reports. As is normally the case, the delegation consisted of officials from the Attorney General’s Office, my Department and officials from a number of other Government Departments,...

Other Questions: Emergency Accommodation Provision (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: As the Deputy well knows, housing is an issue for the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, which received a separate budget. My Department has a budget to support children who are at risk. The Child and Family Agency has a specific team that engages with homelessness services to seek to ensure there are no child protection risks and action is taken if such risks...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Traveller Community (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: The Programme for Government commits the Government to promoting greater co-ordination and integration of delivery of services to the Traveller community across Government, using available resources more effectively to deliver on principles of social inclusion, particularly in area of Traveller education through the DEIS programme. My colleague the Minister for Justice and Equality has...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Preschool Services (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: I have been conscious for some time of the difficulty experienced by some children with a disability in accessing and benefiting fully from the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme. With this in mind, I requested that an Interdepartmental Group, led by this Department, be established with a brief to bring forward recommendations to address this issue. The Group has...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Poverty (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: In recognition of the higher risks and life-long consequences of child poverty, the Government set a child-specific poverty target in Better Outcomes, Better Future: the National Policy Framework for Children and Young People to reduce consistent child poverty by at least two thirds on the 2011 level, a figure of 70,000 children. Based on more recent (2014) data, this target has been updated...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Community Employment Schemes Operation (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: Under new qualification requirements announced by my Department as part of the Early Years Quality Agenda all staff employed to work directly with children in preschool settings will be required to hold, as a minimum, a Level 5 qualification (or equivalent) in early childhood care and education. This new requirement will apply to all new services registering with the Child and Family Agency...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Children and Family Services (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: The National Longitudinal Study Growing Up in Irelandprovides us with valuable information on a wide range of issues affecting children, including a better understanding of how they were affected by the economic recession. A study that used data from Growing Up in Ireland examined the impact of economic vulnerability on the socio-emotional development of children. The data indicated a...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Preschool Services (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the considerable support of the childcare sector and the flexibility of childcare providers and staff in ensuring that the range of childcare support programmes administered by my Department are implemented. At present, the Early Childhood Care and Education Programme covers children who have reached the age of 3 years and 2 months by 1st September of...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Ombudsman for Children Remit (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: The direct provision system is under the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Justice and Equality. The Minister for Justice and Equality has previously addressed, among other issues, the question of the Ombudsman for Children being given jurisdiction in the direct provision system and for the Health Information Quality Authority (HIQA) to be allowed inspect direct provision hostels....

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care Education (28 Jan 2016)

James Reilly: Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the considerable support of the childcare sector and the flexibility of childcare providers and staff in ensuring that the range of childcare support programmes administered by my Department are implemented. At present, the Early Childhood Care and Education Programme covers children who have reached the age of 3 years and 2 months by 1st September of...