Results 21-40 of 19,741 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Staff (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: The Programme for Government has committed to establishing a cap on costs at €200 per child per month to further build on significant progress in affordability that has already been made through a number of existing Schemes. A detailed Action Plan to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early learning and childcare system will be developed, informed by stakeholder...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Data (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: I firmly believe the level of pay for early years educators and school-age childcare practitioners should reflect the value of their work for children, families, society and the economy. Pay is one of a number of issues impacting the early learning and care and school-age childcare workforce. The level of pay for early years educators and school-age childcare practitioners does not reflect...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Family Resource Centres (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: The full year cost of including all groups/organisations that have applied for inclusion in the Family Resource Centre Programme would equate to €7.840 million, if all 49 applicants were successful in meeting the qualifying criteria and were to be allocated core funding of €160,000 each per annum.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Care Services (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: As this relates to information held by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, the question has been forwarded to the Agency for direct reply to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Early Childhood Care and Education (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: The results from the 2025 childcare survey of parents, undertaken by Ipsos B&A on behalf of my Department, highlights the positive progress made in terms of both accessibility and awareness of both pre-school age and school going childcare for families. 91% of the 700 families with children surveyed reported that they were aware that all children aged 2 years and 8 months to 5 years...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Data (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: Core Funding is a grant to providers designed to support quality, sustainability, and enhanced public management, with associated conditions in relation to fee control and cost transparency, incorporating funding for administration and to support the employment of graduate staff. The introduction of Core Funding in 2022 brought a significant increase in investment for the sector, with...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Staff (11 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: My Department has not re-engaged any retired officials on a consultancy basis in the past four years. Where the Department has a requirement to engage the expertise of a consultant for a specific project or piece of work, it is done through a procurement process under a contract for services.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Equality Issues (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1148, 1149, 1150 and 1245 together. Responsibility for anti-racism and anti-semitism policy has transferred to the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration. The Department of Foreign Affairs heads Ireland’s delegation to the IHRA. My Department has not had any role in the adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Ministerial Appointments (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: My Department is currently collating the information requested and a reply will issue directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: Each year, Pobal compiles data from Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School Age Childcare (SAC) providers as part of the Early Years Sector Profile. In 2023/24, 4,021 services completed the Sector Profile survey, a response rate of 87%. The table below provides a breakdown of the number of service providers with at least one vacant place and service providers with no vacant places in each...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Inquiries (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: For context, subsidies awarded under the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) typically last 12 months. Every NCS award has an end-date which is clearly stated on the award. Applicants must renew their application before this end-date if they wish to continue receiving a subsidy for their child. If they do not renew, the award will expire and the subsidy payment will stop at the end date i.e. the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Data (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: Investment in early learning and childcare is now at unprecedented levels with public funding exceeding €1.37 billion in 2025, clearly demonstrating Government commitment to this area. Core Funding is now worth €331 million for the current and third year of the scheme (September 2024 to August 2025). Targeted supports for small and sessional services in Year 2 of Core Funding...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: The Programme for Government commits to reducing the cost of early learning and childcare to €200 per month per child. This will build on significant progress in affordability that has already been made through a number of existing Schemes. The Early Childhood Care and Education Programme, which provides two years of pre-school without charge, enjoys participation rates of 96%....

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Staff (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: I wish to advise the Deputy that my officials have asked Tusla to respond directly to you on this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Programmes (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: Work is well advanced on the Programme for Government commitment to reduce the administrative burden on providers. On 19 September 2023, plans to develop an Action Plan for Administrative and Regulatory Simplification for the Early Learning and Childcare Sector were announced, supported by a Working Group comprising representatives from the Department, Pobal and the City / County Childcare...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Meetings (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: The 2001 Planning Guidelines for Local Authorities on Early Learning and Childcare Settings were issued under section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000. The Guidelines are intended to ensure a consistency of approach throughout the country to the treatment of applications in respect to the land use planning aspects of early learning and childcare provision, for relevant planning...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Shared Services (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: Work is progressing to develop a data sharing agreement between the Department of Children, Disability and Equality, Better Start, and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE). This agreement will formalise the sharing of data between Better Start and the NCSE for the purpose of assisting in the planning of educational provision for children moving from an early learning and care...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Funding (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: Core Funding was introduced in September 2022. The Scheme is designed to improve affordability for parents through the introduction of fee management and contractual requirements on providers to offer the National Childcare Scheme and/or the ECCE programme. The Scheme aims to improve quality through better pay and conditions for the workforce by supporting agreement on Employment...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Funding (10 Jun 2025)

Norma Foley: The Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme was launched on 4th November 2024. The closing date for applications was 30th January. A total of 78 applications were received. These applications came from a variety of locations across the country. In May, I announced the 49 applications which will be progressing to the next stage of the process. These 49 applications come from a mix of...