Results 2,901-2,920 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education Staff (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: It is important that we acknowledge the role played by staff working the childcare sector. Childcare workers play a critical role in delivering high quality childcare services and they deserve to be recognised, valued and respected for this. I do, however, acknowledge that pay and conditions are major issues facing the sector and can lead to difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff....

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: School Completion Programme (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I am retaining the grant in its current form for the present, pending a decision on alternative approaches. In 1994 the Department of Social Welfare opened a grant scheme to provide counselling supports to children who had experienced bereavement or loss. This grant scheme then passed to the Family Support Agency (FSA) when it was established in 2003 and subsequently to Tusla on...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Affordable Childcare Scheme (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The Affordable Childcare Scheme (ACS) has been designed to facilitate the inclusion of childminders. However, it is essential that public subsidies are only provided to childcare providers where there is a sufficient level of assurance of the quality of provision. For this reason, the ACS will be delivered through Tusla-registered childcare providers, both centre-based providers and...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Care Services (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The service to which the Deputy refers has not made an application for capital funding under the early years capital scheme, 2017. As the deadline for this has now passed, It will not be possible to facilitate an application at this stage. I understand that the service in question is faced with the prospect of closure - I have asked officials to work with the local Childcare Committee and...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Abuse (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: As the Deputy will be aware, the primary legislation regulating child care policy is the Child Care Act 1991. Under the 1991 Act, as amended by the Child and Family Agency Act 2013, Tusla - the Child and Family Agency has a statutory duty to promote the welfare of children who are not receiving adequate care and protection. The Child Care Act 1991 is the key piece of legislation whereby the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Contracts Data (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: All cleaning contractors for my Department are being paid, equal to or above, the legal Employment Regulation Order (ERO) hourly rate. There are no security contracts as this is arranged by the Office of Public Works. The Adoption Authority of Ireland and Oberstown Children Detention Campus have both confirmed that contracts for security and cleaning where applicable also comply with...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The Government is committed to responding to the discovery of infant remains by the Commission of Investigation on the site of the former mother and baby home in Tuam as effectively and as sensitively as possible. I have appointed a multi disciplinary team of experts to provide technical advice's to Government in this highly specialised area. I want to ensure that the approach adopted is...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Affordable Childcare Scheme Implementation (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: To avoid delaying the benefit of higher childcare subsidies for low-income families, I have made a number of changes to existing childcare schemes that will bring substantial benefits to tens of thousands of children and their families from this September. These changes will include a new universal subsidy of up to €1,040 per annum, for children aged from 6 months up to 36 months old...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Expenditure (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Officials of my Department order taxis when necessary in the course of their work and when public transport cannot be utilised. The amount invoiced and spent by my Department for taxis in 2015 was €8,393,2016 was €12,700 and January 2017 to present is €9,811. No limousines were hired or paid for by my Department over this timeframe.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Capitation Grants (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The actual cost of this proposal would be subject to a number of factors including actual levels of participation and the number of children subvented at the 'higher capitation' rate. Extrapolating from 2016/17 figures, the estimated cost of introducing this measure in September 2018, would be €20 million with increases of €3 million annually for every additional 1% of children...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Services Funding (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1438 and 1439 together. My Department administers a range of funding schemes and programmes to support the provision of youth services to young people throughout the country including those from disadvantaged communities. The funding schemes support national and local youth work involving approximately 1,400 youth work staff working in youth services and...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Children and Family Services Provision (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The Department notes that you have requested clarification regarding a specific proposal to establish a childcare and family support service in the Longford area. The Department can confirm that it has received the proposal you refer to, and has conducted a review of its contents. The Department acknowledges the ambition and scope of the proposed project, which would involve the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education Staff (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: My Department provides standard capitation of €64.50 per week and higher capitation of €75.00 per week for childcare places under the ECCE Scheme. Given that it is a matter for each individual employer to determine the allocation of staff, resources and ratios (subject to the governing provisions with regard to ratios) from this capitation rate, it is not possible to estimate...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Affordable Childcare Scheme Expenditure (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1442 to 1450, inclusive, together. The detailed information sought by the Deputy is not currently available in the format requested. Officials in my Department are compiling this information, which will be supplied to the Deputy in no later than 10 working days.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Mental Health Services Funding (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: My Department does not directly fund mental health supports for children and young persons. Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, which is funded by my Department, provides specific funding for mental health supports for children and young persons. I have referred the question to Tusla for direct response to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Affordable Childcare Scheme (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: As indicated in my previous reply to the Deputy, the subsidy-rates proposed for the Affordable Childcare Scheme reflect the current cost of delivering childcare, including current wage rates. If wage rates were to rise, my Department would have to examine the possible need for subsidy rates to rise to reflect the higher cost of delivery for childcare providers. Subsidy rates are a matter...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Social Workers Recruitment (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla has advised that the estimated full year cost of recruiting 500 new social workers and 1,000 new social workers, costed as Professionally Qualified Social Workers is as follows: # 500 1000 PQSW PQSW Basic Pay 24,703,289 49,406,578 ER PRSI 2,655,604 5,311,208 Total Pay Cost 27,358,893 54,717,786 Overhead @25 % of BP 6,175,822 12,351,644 Total Cost 33,534,715 67,067,430

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Psychological Assessments (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: A standard protocol for the provision of psychological assessment to every child who comes into or lives in the care of the State has not been developed. In most cases a protocol of this nature would be unnecessary and inappropriate. When a child is taken into care they are assigned to a social worker, who undertakes a detailed assessment, prior to developing a tailored care plan. Any...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Employment Initiative (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Last year, I announced the Youth Employability Initiative which is funded under the Dormant Accounts scheme. 28 youth projects have received grants under this Initiative to support programmes that target disadvantaged young people who are most at risk of unemployment and who are not in education, employment or training. The programmes assisted over 1,000 young people aged 15 to 24 years...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Care Services (26 Jul 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The funding provided by the Department has always been intended to be sufficient to cater for all of the costs associated with the childcare schemes funded, including administrative or "non-contact" work, or to fund this pro-rata where the Department's contribution is a part of the total cost of care provided. Notwithstanding this, to take account of the additional administrative burden...