Results 6,441-6,460 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Legislative Measures (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: As the Deputy is aware, the Child Care (Amendment) Act 2015 was signed into law in December of last year and is awaiting commencement. The Act is primarily concerned with aftercare – the planning and support put in place to meet the needs of a young person who is leaving statutory care at 18 years of age, to assist him or her in making the transition to independent living. The Act...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Care Costs (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: The DCYA administers a number of programmes to assist parents in accessing affordable childcare. These programmes are predominantly available through formal childcare settings such as crèches or preschools, some of which are run by community/not-for profit organisations, and some by private providers. In some instances programmes are also available through Tusla notified childminders...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Legislative Measures (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: As the Deputy may be aware, the Adoption Act 2010 was commenced on the 1st of November 2010 and all sections of the Act came in to operation on that date. Under the Adoption Act 2010 the Child and Family Agency carries out robust and comprehensive assessments on individuals who wish to adopt a child. The assessment of a person suitable to adopt as per section 34 of the Adoption Act 2010...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Preschool Services (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: I am aware of an integrated pre-school unit at the facility in question. I have liaised with the Department of Education and Skills (DES) regarding this facility and I am open to meeting with the Minister to discuss this matter further. Under Circular 16/05 issued to primary schools in 2005, the use of school premises during the school day, for purposes other than regular school business...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Family Agency Funding (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: Under the Child Care Act, 1991, guardians ad litemare appointed by the Courts. The Child and Family Agency has statutory responsibility under this Act for payment of any costs incurred by a person who has been appointed by a court to act as a guardian ad litemin proceedings under the Act. I have made enquiries with the Child and Family Agency and I have been informed that the Agency has been...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Industrial Relations (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: As Minister with responsibility for children and young people, I am committed, first and foremost, to the provision of an appropriate, safe and secure environment for children in custody on the Oberstown campus. These children are cared for by staff who deserve to have a safe working environment. In recent years it has been Government policy to end the practice of detaining children in...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Care Services Provision (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: Special care is intended as a short term secure care placement in a therapeutic environment with the intention of returning the child to a community or family based setting as soon as possible. Special care is used to address the risk of harm that may be caused to a child's life, health, safety, development or welfare by their behaviour. Children are admitted to Special Care following a...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Community Childcare Subvention Programme (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: The Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) Programme was designed to support disadvantaged parents, parents in low-paid employment and parents in training or education by enabling those who qualify to avail of reduced childcare costs at participating community or not-for-profit childcare services. Due to economic constraints, Budget 2012 closed the CCS Programme to new applications from...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Family Agency Funding (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency was established under the Child and Family Agency Act, 2013 on 1 January 2014. The Agency has responsibility for a range of services, including: - child welfare and protection services, including family support services previously delivered by the HSE; - services provided by the former Family Support Agency and the National Educational Welfare Board; -...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: I am aware of the service in question and it is my understanding that a decision was taken to remove higher capitation status from this service with effect from January 4th 2016 after a Pobal verification visit found it to be non-compliant with the terms of the scheme for the 2015-16 programme. The service have been contacted and informed of their right to appeal this decision. For a...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Adoption Legislation (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: The primary purpose of the Adoption (Amendment) Bill 2016 is to amend the Adoption Act 2010 to give legislative effect to the 31st Amendment to the Constitution (Children) Act 2012 which was signed into law on 28th April 2015. However since the Referendum there have been other legislative enactments, in particular the Child and Family Relationships Act 2015, which required the amendments to...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: HIQA Reports (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: I welcome the findings of the Health Information and Quality Authority’s (HIQA) 2015 overview report of their independent inspections of the Child and Family Agency, Tusla child protection and children in care services. The report stated that, overall, HIQA found standards across all three areas of residential, foster care and child protection to be good. There was good social work...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Agencies Board Appointments (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: The Child and Family Agency Act, 2013, provides for the appointment of a nine person Board consisting of a Chairperson, a Deputy Chairperson and seven ordinary members all appointed by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. The Board currently consists of seven board members with two vacancies. Three further vacancies will arise at the end of the year when the term of office of three...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Legislative Programme (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: My Department willnotbe resubmitting any legislation from the previous Dáil as there was no legislation relevant to my Department that had not been enacted before that Dáil was dissolved. The Adoption (Amendment) Bill is currently before the Dáil. It has passed Second Stage, and Committee Stage is awaited. It is anticipated that the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill will...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Agencies Board Appointments (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: The Child and Family Agency Act, 2013, provides for the appointment of a nine person Board consisting of a Chairperson, a Deputy Chairperson and seven ordinary members all appointed by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. The Board currently consists of seven board members with two vacancies. Three further vacancies will arise at the end of the year when the term of office of three...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Counselling Services Provision (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, provides funding to voluntary organisations offering a range of counselling and support services to children and families including: · Marriage and relationship counselling; · Child counselling; · Rainbows Peer Support Programme for children; · Bereavement counselling and support on the death of a family member. This year, Tusla is...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Protection Services Provision (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: There is a wide range of child and family support services available through both the statutory and non statutory sectors. These include services provided by Government Departments, other state agencies and an extensive network of non-governmental organisations. Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, allocates funding of approximately €100m to 700 voluntary organisations to provide...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Children in Care (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: My Department receives regular detailed reports on key performance and activity indicators of service provision, including on children in care, from the Child and Family Agency, Tusla. My officials have regular meetings on a monthly and quarterly basis with Tusla management to review the overall level of service provision, including areas in need of improvement. In addition to regular...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Bullying in the Workplace (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: The Action Plan On Bullying: Report of the Anti-Bullying Working Group to the Minister for Education and Skills was published in January 2013 and clearly recognised the necessity to tackle this issue in a holistic way which saw schools as pivotal, but placed the issue within a much wider social context. Cyberbullying is just one aspect of bullying, but one which, given the rapid expansion of...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Services Funding (9 Jun 2016)

Katherine Zappone: 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 provision to some 380,000 young people and involve approximately 1,400 youth work staff in 477 projects and 40,000 volunteers working in...