Results 2,161-2,180 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Children in Care (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 245 and 247 together. I can inform the Deputy that Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, use the number of placements a child has in a year as an indicator of placement stability. Data on placement stability is published in Tusla's annual Review of Adequacy report, which is published annually in arrears. The most recently published Review of Adequacy relates to...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The CAHMS service is provided by the HSE. The Deputy may wish to redirect this question to my colleague, the Minister for Health.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Adoption Records Provision (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: I am aware that there is an estimated 50,000 records relating to adoption that are not in the custody of either Tusla or the Adoption Authority of Ireland. The Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2016 provides for the Adoption Authority of Ireland to be responsible for collecting, restoring, preserving and safekeeping adoption records, including information relating to persons whose...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Illegal Adoptions (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The progress made regarding contacting those affected by the cases of illegal birth registrations discovered in the St. Patrick's Guild records is a matter for Tusla. The process of contacting and then supporting those affected is being handled very carefully, on a case by case basis, and at the pace of the individual concerned. Tusla has advised me that all those affected, who have been...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Illegal Adoptions (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 251 and 252 together. The review carried out by the Adoption Authority of Ireland that the Deputy refers to related to applications it received to the National Adoption Contact Preference Register, and other cases which it had been notified of. In these cases the only exercise the Adoption Authority could carry out was to ascertain if an adoption record...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Legislative Measures (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: It is my intention to progress to Committee Stage of the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2016 in the Seanad Éireann as quickly as possible. It is intended that a number of Government amendments will be proposed at Committee Stage or Report Stage. These are currently being finalised. Some of these amendments seek to address concerns raised about elements of the Bill during the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Illegal Adoptions (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Following the discovery of cases of illegal registration in the Saint Patrick's Guild records, I initiated a targeted review of adoption records. The purpose of this review is to determine if similar evidence of illegal registration can be identified from the records of other former adoption agencies and other relevant bodies. This review process is being carried by the Adoption Authority...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Illegal Adoptions (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Yes, I have received two interim reports from the Independent Reviewer, which I have reviewed and which have been published on the Department's website. These reports set out an overview of the methodological approach being taken. As the Deputy will be aware, I initiated this targeted review of adoption records following the discovery of cases of illegal registration in the Saint...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Staff Data (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: My Department is not currently involved in any major State infrastructural projects. The Procurement Unit in my Department is a small unit that provides procurement advice and assistance to units as required. It also maintains a centralised register of all contracts with supporting documentation and ensures that Departmental policies and guidelines are current and updated as necessary.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Years Sector (30 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: There are 7 Early Years Specialists, based in Better Start, assigned to services in north and south County Tipperary. Specialists work across a range of counties in response to service requests. Under the Access and Inclusion Model, the Better Start Early Years Specialists provide expert advice, mentoring and support to providers and practitioners in early learning and care for children with...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Illegal Adoptions (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The progress made regarding contacting those affected by the cases of illegal registrations discovered in the St. Patrick's Guild records is a matter for Tusla and the process is still ongoing. The Deputy will be aware that the process of contacting people in these circumstances is a sensitive and complex one and the pace must respect the wishes of the individual involved. Tusla has...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Years Sector (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The regulation of school-age childcare is an important measure to secure children's health, safety and welfare. The registration of school-age childcare services is also necessary given the restriction of the Affordable Childcare Scheme to services that are registered with Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. Initial regulations will come into force on 18th February, enabling services to...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Work Projects Funding (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The project referred to by the Deputy receives funding from my Department through the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and Community Childcare Subvention Plus (CCSP) programmes. In addition, the project also receives funding from Tusla under the School Completion Programme (SCP). The CCS Programme is a childcare programme targeted to support parents on a low income to avail of...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Protection (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Under Section 3 of the Child Care Act 1991 Tusla has a statutory function to promote the welfare of children who are not receiving adequate care and protection. This applies to all children, regardless of their age. When a referral about a child welfare or protection concern is made, Tusla social workers must assess the circumstances of the child or children involved. Appropriate...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Children in Care (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: I have been provided by Tusla with data on the number of children taken into care under Section 13 or 17 of the Child Care Act 1991. Children are not admitted to care under Section 12 of the Act, which is only used by An Gardaí Síochána to remove a child to safety. Data on admissions of children aged under 30 days is not collated nationally and the data provided is a count...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Family Agency Policy (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, recognises that some parents, including those with a disability, may need additional support and special consideration in respect of their disabilities and their parenting capacity. The Child Protection and Welfare Practice Handbook outlines that, in circumstances where a parent/carer has a disability, it is likely that there may be a number of...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The statutory Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related matters) is tasked with examining burial arrangements for persons who died while resident in these institutions. My Department is not separately investigating these matters. In its fourth interim report, which I published last week, the Commission reiterates the significant challenge of investigating...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Affordable Childcare Scheme (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Government policy relating to the new Affordable Childcare Scheme (ACS) was informed by evidence and with the best interests of children and families in mind. The legislation supporting the scheme, the Childcare Support Act 2018, was the subject of much discussion in the Houses and many elements of the policy were considered by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children on a number of...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education Funding (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: In 2018, €303.4m was allocated for the funding of the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Scheme. This level of funding facilitated the attendance of c. 119,000 children in the ECCE pre-school programme. In 2019, €298.1m has been allocated for the ECCE scheme based on an anticipated c. 109,000 children registering with ECCE providers. It should be noted that a...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education (29 Jan 2019)

Katherine Zappone: €298.1m has been allocated to the Early Childhood Care and Education scheme in 2019. Currently, children registered on ECCE receive 15 hours of free pre-school education per week. Should the 15 hour entitlement be increased by 2 hours per week to a total of 17 hours per week, this would result in an estimated additional cost of €39.7m in 2019. Should the 15 hour entitlement be...