Results 4,741-4,760 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: HIQA Inspections (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: I believe that the Deputy is referring to HIQA’s inspection report of a children’s residential centre in the South region which was published on the 10th of October.  There were four young people, two aged 17 and two aged 16,  living in the centre when the inspection was carried out. While the inspection report was critical of aspects of the centre, I was pleased...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Detention Centres (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: I welcome the most recent inspection report from the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) into Oberstown Children Detention Campus, which was published on the 9th of October. HIQA had conducted a full inspection over five days, last March, and this report was the outcome of that inspection. This report acknowledges that having undergone major change over the past few years, the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Services (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency has an annual Service Level Agreement in place with the organisation to which the Deputy refers, YAP Ireland.   Under the terms of the current Agreement, the organisation is contracted in the Galway/Roscommon area to provide a support service to 18 young people in need. The young people are assigned an advocate that will work with...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Services Provision (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: My officials made enquiries with Dublin/Dun Laoghaire ETB who are the intermediary body for youth projects in the Tyrrelstown area and have been advised that the Foróige projects and clubs in Tyrrelstown were in a fortunate position as the closure of the Centre coincided with the Halloween mid-term.  Outreach and Halloween trips went on as planned and staff relocated themselves to...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Funding (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: Budget 2019 has made provision for a total allocation of €32 million in capital funding for my Department. The allocation is split between two programmes areas within my Department's Vote: Programme Capital Allocation Children & Family Support €20.140m Sectorial Programmes for Children and Young People €11.860m Total €32.000m It is not possible at...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Family Agency Staff (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla has advised me that by the end of September 2018 a total of 678 appointments were made. 366 of the 678 were new hires to Tusla,  with internal recruitment accounting for the remainder. I understand that 225 staff have retired or left Tusla during the same period.  I strongly support Tusla’s important work and by 2019 I will have secured an additional €110m...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services Staff (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 36 and 41 together. Supporting the delivery of high quality early learning and care for children and families is at the centre of my Department's work. In recent years, we have enhanced supports for quality childcare provision in many ways, including: Funding to support further and higher education, as well as continuing professional development, for...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services Provision (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: A key priority for me as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs is to ensure access to high quality and affordable early years and school-age childcare services. Each year Pobal conducts research on behalf of my Department to examine a number of factors related to childcare services in Ireland, including the monitoring of capacity. The most recent Early Years Sector Profile...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Guardians Ad Litem (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: My Department is currently finalising the drafting of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2018, which provides for reform of the Guardian ad litem service, with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel. Work is being progressed with a view to publishing the Bill as soon as possible. A small project team is also working to plan for the establishment of the Guardian ad litem service within an...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services Funding (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: I thank the Deputy for his question about the Cottage Home Family Support Service, which provides family support services to children and families in the South Dublin area. The organisation also provides a residential care service for young people. In 2018, Tusla, the Child and Family Agency is providing €1.6 million in funding for the residential component of this service. I...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: School Absenteeism (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: As the Deputy may be aware, Tusla Educational Welfare Services (EWS) is responsible for addressing issues in relation to participation, retention and attendance in schools. Educational Welfare Officers (EWOs) work with young people and their families who are experiencing difficulty with school attendance. The main priority of their work is around the welfare of children and young people...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Support Payments (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: The Government is committed to supporting parents in caring for young children at home in a range of ways. Within the remit of my Department, a number of schemes provide support to parents whether they work full time, part time, or look after their children at home. For example, from September of this year, all children are eligible to avail of two years of universal pre-school,...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Abuse (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: The Deputy will be aware that it is not appropriate for me to comment on individual cases. I have written to Tusla, the Child and Family Agency and asked them to ensure that the individual matter to which the Deputy refers receives the appropriate attention. I have also asked Tusla to respond directly to the Deputy in relation to his queries on the management of complaints that predate...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Parental Leave (7 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: Parental leave, and the range of different types of family leave which are available, are of considerable significance for children’s experiences and their outcomes. For these reasons, the Department of Children and Youth Affairs has a clear interest in policy developments in these areas. To this end, officials from my Department have actively engaged in an Inter-Departmental Group...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Domestic Violence Services Funding (8 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of domestic, sexual or gender-based violence, whether in the context of the family or otherwise. Accordingly, Tusla has provided funding for domestic, sexual and gender-based violence services since its foundation in 2014. This includes services in Counties Cavan and Monaghan. In 2018,...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Ministerial Meetings (13 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: It is generally the practice of my Department, in the case of meetings involving myself and third parties, for officials to attend and minute same. There are no Ministers of State in my Department.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Community Childcare Subvention Programme (13 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: The Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and Community Childcare Subvention Plus (CCSP) Programmes provide support for parents/guardians on a low income to avail of reduced childcare costs at participating privately owned childcare services and at community not-for-profit childcare services. The eligibility of the applying parent/guardian is determined by their status with the Department...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Years Strategy Implementation (13 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: A Whole-of-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families has recently been approved by Government and will be published on 19th November. The Strategy sets out a vision for early childhood and a roadmap for the coming decade. One of the actions in the Strategy is to pilot the introduction of baby boxes and Dormant Accounts funding has been secured for this project. Baby...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Ministerial Correspondence (13 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: I can inform the Deputy that a request was received to meet with the service provider referred to. However, following consideration of the request, it was my view that the subject was more appropriate to my colleague the Minister for Health. Accordingly, my Office wrote back to the service provider and suggested that they contact Minister Harris.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Family Agency Staff (13 Nov 2018)

Katherine Zappone: As training is an operational matter for the Tusla, I do not have sight of the documents referenced by the Deputy. I am advised by Tusla that its training needs analysis is managed in line with the Tusla Strategy for Continual Professional Development. The strategy calls for a three yearly agency wide training needs analysis to be coordinated by Tusla Workforce Learning and Development. I...