Results 7,081-7,100 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Abuse (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: Thank you for asking this very important question about the standard of care provided to a child in foster care. The trauma and neglect detailed in the article by the woman concerned, about her care as a child, is most distressing. I am reassured that upon new information coming to light the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission has begun a new probe. I await the outcome. I have...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: Low pay and poor working conditions in the sector remain a serious concern and impact on the quality of provision to children through their effect on the recruitment and retention of qualified staff. The lack of consistency of care caused by high staff turnover impacts directly on quality, while low wages are a constraint on plans to upskill and professionalise the workforce. As the State...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Strategies (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: The Draft Childminding Action Plan, which was published for the purpose of public consultation in August 2019, sets out a pathway to achieving Government commitments in First 5.Officials in my Department are in the process of analysing the findings from the public consultation process and making revisions to the Draft Childminding Action Plan, with the aim of bringing a revised Childminding...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: In line with emerging best practice to support the integration and independence of children with a disability, the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) provides financial support to the pre-school provider which can be used either to reduce the adult to child ratio in the pre-school room or to buy in additional assistance. Accordingly, staff employed with funding under Level 7 of AIM are a shared...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Abuse (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: The Deputy is asking about an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy. I have been informed by Tusla that a direct response issued on 15 April 2020. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) for pre-school children was established in 2016 and is now in its fourth year of operation. It aims to support children with disabilities to access and meaningfully participate in the ECCE universal pre-school programme. AIM is a child-centred model that involves seven levels of progressive support, moving from the universal to the targeted, based on the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Protected Disclosures (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: My Department is currently collating the data required I will correspond directly with the Deputy on the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Offices (13 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: My Department offices are situated in Dublin and there are no offices in the locations mentioned by the Deputy.

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: First, I will address the cancellation of the scheme to deliver childcare to essential healthcare workers. The scheme was intended to be temporary. Other countries had maintained a level of service to the children of essential workers; in Ireland, for strong public health reasons, it was deemed that full closure of childcare services was necessary. As a consequence, staff, to a large...

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: There will be an incident of transmission but we can manage it, not prevent it.

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: On the consultation or advice from the Department of Health, we did have it as we went along. I have noted that in the speech. This particular scheme was one of two schemes we were working on devising, as there is a centre based scheme as well. We were working with the Department of Health and the HSE in regard to that and in terms of any kind of concerns in regard to infection control....

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: From whom did the Deputy seek the minutes?

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: What was the response for their not being provided?

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: I will bring that to their attention as well.

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: We did look at the issue of the State indemnity and we argued many times with the Department of Public Expenditure for that to be the case. Effectively, that Department of Public Expenditure and Reform said no. That is what happened there.

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: Indeed the Deputy can. I outlined in my opening speech the processes of various types of consultation we had in regard to developing the scheme, including with the sector on some of the issues that it was still then raising in terms of the reasons why they did not sign-up. They did identify some of those reasons. We did fight for the insurance, as I have described. In anticipation of a...

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: Does the Deputy mean in relation to childcare workers?

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: It does.

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: Is it in terms of the groupings of who are those workers?

Covid-19 (Children and Youth Affairs): Statements (20 May 2020)

Katherine Zappone: It is not our Department that makes the list. It is the Department of Health and the HSE. I can list those workers for the Deputy as soon as I get the exact information.