Results 961-980 of 11,855 for speaker:Roderic O'Gorman

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: Since Tusla was established, its Communications Section has engaged external communications services solely for providing specific expertise in supporting campaigns, projects and events as needed. The table below outlines the costs and descriptions of the services provided for the years requested Year Amount Spent Service/Topics Covered 2022 ...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Family Resource Centres (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that I secured an additional €800,000 in Budget 2025 for the Family Resource Centre (FRC) Programme. I expect this additional funding will allow for expansion of the FRC Programme membership from 121 members to 126 members, an increase in 5 FRCs across the country. This is in addition to the funding equalisation scheme for existing FRCs that I...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Childcare Support Act 2018, which provides a statutory basis for the National Childcare Scheme, specifies that only Tusla-registered providers are eligible to participate in the Scheme. The limitation of public funding schemes to Tusla-registered childcare providers helps to ensure that public funding is provided where there is assurance of the quality of provision. The National...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Youth Services (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: From 2020 to 2024, current Exchequer funding provided by my Department for youth services and programmes increased from €61.79 million to €77.95 million, a 26% increase overall. In respect of Budget 2025, I have secured a further significant increase to existing youth schemes to .€84.79 million This increased allocation will support the expansion of both targeted and...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Budgets (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: I thank the Deputy for his question. At the end of September, gross expenditure is running €278.6 million ahead of REV profile. The main expenditure pressures for the Department in 2024 are in International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS), Specialist Community Based Disability Services (SCBDS), Tusla, the Child and Family Agency and Early Learning and Care, and...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: Improving access to quality and affordable early learning and childcare is a key priority of Government. Data available to my Department demonstrates that, overall, early learning and childcare provision is expanding in terms of number of services opening, the number of places and hours of provision that services are offering, the numbers of staff employed and the numbers of parents supported...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: Improving access to quality and affordable early learning and childcare is a key priority of Government. Data available to shows that the level of capacity in the sector has risen substantially in recent years. Sector profile data shows an increase in enrolments nationally of 8% between 2022 and 2023 with a similar increase in enrolments in Kildare for the same period. However, I am aware...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Youth Services (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department officials and I regularly meet with representatives of the youth sector, including young people, youth service providers and the Education and Training Boards (ETBs) who administer a number of the key funding schemes on behalf of my Department. My officials are in regular contact with Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI), the representative body for all of the ETBs....

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: The term after-school can cover a range of activities from regulated school aged childcare to after-school homework clubs or youth activity projects such as cooking lessons. Depending on the activity, funding may be available from different Departments and agencies. For the purposes of this answer, it is assumed that the matter being raised is school aged childcare. A ‘school age...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Equality Issues (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: All public bodies have responsibility under Section 42 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014 to promote equality, prevent discrimination and protect the human rights of their employees, customers, service users and everyone affected by their policies and plans. The public sector duty assessment and implementation plan for the Department of Children, Equality, Disability,...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Children in Care (2 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: The question of total number of children currently in various forms of care has been interpreted to refer to children in alternative care. Tusla’s latest available Monthly Service Performance and Activity Report informs that there were 5,803 children in care at the end of July 2024. 87.2% (5,062) of all children in care are in foster care (3,588 general foster care, and 1,474 relative...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Deputy has sought some statistics pertaining to the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme which I provide here as at 23 September. Applications to the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Number March 951 April 1,586 May 971 June 486 July ...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme is an important measure in the Government’s Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions. The Interdepartmental Group, that advised the Government on the design of the Scheme, estimated the cost of "Communication and Publicity" for a scheme of this scale at €2.75 million. The...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Mother and Baby Homes (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: In October 2022 the Government made an Order, under the Institutional Burials Act 2022, to direct the establishment of an independent Office to lead an intervention at the site of the former Mother and Baby institution in Tuam. In March 2023, I formally established the Office of Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam and in May I appointed Mr Daniel MacSweeney as the Director to head...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Staff (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department has not employed forensic accountants in the period to which the Deputy refers. Since April 2023, the Ukraine Division in my Department has engaged an accountancy firm to assist in supporting the payment function for my Department's costs incurred in the Government's response to the Ukraine crisis. This mostly related to costs of temporary emergency accommodation sourced by and...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Staff (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: The Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme opened on 20 March. In terms of staffing for Scheme delivery, a blended operating model was developed. This provides for the Chief Deciding Officer to be supported by a core Executive Office operating independently but based in my Department and also by experienced third party support, appointed after a procurement process. This blended...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: As the subject matter of the Deputy's question relates to an operational matter for Tusla, I have referred the matter to them for a direct reply.

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Childcare Services (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: Under the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016, all staff working directly with children in a pre-school service must hold at least a Level 5 major award in early childhood care and education on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ), or a qualification that has been deemed to be equivalent. On a temporary basis, the Department had arranged to reopen the...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Schemes (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: My Department launched the Little Baby Bundle pilot in February 2023. The Little Baby Bundle is designed to be a gift from the State for new parents, welcoming a new arrival to their family. The gift is an acknowledgement by the State of this very significant and special moment for parents. It includes key items to support parents after the birth of their baby, to support parent-infant...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Family Resource Centres (1 Oct 2024)

Roderic O'Gorman: I wish to inform the Deputy that Tusla, the Child and Family Agency administers the Family Resource Centre (FRC) Programme, which supports 121 FRCs throughout the country. My Department allocates core funding for the FRC Programme through Tusla, which has advised my Department that the current level of funding is to sustain existing services operating in the FRC Programme. I can inform...