Results 1,061-1,080 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Ministerial Advisers Data (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: As Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, I have appointed two Special Advisers in my Department. The appointments have been made in accordance with Instructions for Ministerial Appointments as published by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. These instructions set specific conditions to be met in respect of such appointments including salaries to be applied. Please see the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Youth Services Funding (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: My Department is managing the most significant reform of youth services’ funding ever undertaken. This reform is informed by the 2014 Value for Money and Policy Review of Youth Funding Programmes. This review made a number of recommendations for the future operation of youth schemes and their development in the years ahead to ensure an evidence-based and outcomes-focused programme...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services Regulation (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla as the independent statutory regulator of early years services has the power to inspect early years services and to carry out prosecutions in relation to breaches of regulations by early years services. In relation to child protection concerns, the Tusla Early Years Inspectorate also takes immediate action through referral to the social work function within Tusla. In relation to Tusla's...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education Staff (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The early learning and care sector has been identified as a sector in which low pay and poor working conditions for staff are common, which impacts on the quality of provision to children through its effect on the recruitment and retention of qualified staff. The lack of consistency of care resulting from high staff turnover levels impacts directly on quality, and low wages are a constraint...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services Administration (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Childcare Support Act 2018 makes provision for specific statutory bodies including Tusla and the HSE to access childcare to support vulnerable children and families and for the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to enter into formal agreements with the various bodies for these purposes. Engagement is ongoing between my officials and each of the bodies in relation to the terms of...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Services for People with Disabilities (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), which was launched in June 2016, is a model of supports designed to ensure that children with disabilities can access the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme. Its goal is to empower early learning and care practitioners to deliver an inclusive preschool experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Services for People with Disabilities (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), which was launched in June 2016, is a model of supports designed to ensure that children with disabilities can access the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) preschool programme. Its goal is to empower pre-school providers to deliver an inclusive pre-school experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the ECCE...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Childcare Services Administration (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: As per the DCYA Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) funding programme rules, a service provider may charge a refundable booking deposit to hold an ECCE place for a child. The maximum deposit a provider may charge is equivalent to four weeks’ ECCE payment (€258). The totality of the ECCE deposit must be returned to the parent/guardian once the child’s registration is...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education Programmes (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) funding agreement is published on the Pobal Programme Implementation Platform (PIP) a number of weeks before the launch of each programme year. There is ample time for service providers to review, seek clarification and sign the funding agreement before the start of the ECCE programme. In the unlikely event that a change of circumstances...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: City and County Child Care Committees (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) funding agreement requirements are clearly outlined in both the programme rules and the funding agreement itself. My Department is not aware of any discrepancies among City/County Childcare Committees in relation to this matter. If the Deputy has specific examples, I would urge her to please contact officials from my Department through...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child and Family Agency Staff (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Deputy will be aware that it is not appropriate for me to comment on individual cases, nor to make a direction that may interfere in the decision-making and professional judgement of Tusla social work staff. I can advise the Deputy that I have referred the matter to Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, for their appropriate attention.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Departmental Expenditure (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The Department of Health provides ICT services to my Department under the terms of a Service Level Agreement. As part of this agreement DCYA's Lotus Notes infrastructure is furnished by the Department of Health, along with a block allocation of Notes' software licenses for staff. There is no expenditure associated with the receipt of this service. As the Department transitions to the...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Early Childhood Care and Education Data (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: €298.1m has been allocated to the Early Childhood Care and Education scheme in 2019. The following table outlines the projected cost in 2019 of increasing the standard and higher capitation rates for the programme by increments of €5 over and above current levels, up to a €25 increase. This costing is based on the increases occurring from September 2019. Increase...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: School Completion Programme (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The full-year cost of restoring the SCP to peak funding levels would be in the region of €7.3 million per annum.

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: School Completion Programme (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: There are 124 School Completion Programmes nationally providing interventions to 69,775 children and young people to support attendance, participation and retention across School Completion Programme cluster schools. The number of School Completion Programmes broken down by county is set out in the following table. County No of SCP’s Carlow 2 Cavan 1 Clare 2 Cork 11 Donegal 5...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: School Completion Programme (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: There are 124 School Completion Programmes nationally providing interventions to 69,775 children and young people to support attendance, participation and retention across School Completion Programme cluster schools. The number of School Completion Programmes broken down by county is set out in the following table. County No of SCPs Carlow 2 Cavan 1 Clare 2 Cork 11 Donegal 5 Dublin 47...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: School Completion Programme (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: The School Completion Programme is a core programme under the DEIS programme and is one of three service strands under Tusla’s Educational Welfare Services (EWS) providing direct interventions to children and young people. Each year since the programme transferred to Tusla in 2014, €24.7m in funding has been allocated to the School Completion Programme projects nationally....

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Family Resource Centres (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency is responsible for the administration of the Family Resource Centre Programme. I have allocated an additional €4.5m in funding for the Family Resource Centre Programme between 2018 and 2019. This allowed for increases in core funding for each centre, as well as the establishment of 11 new FRCs last year, bringing the total number of FRCs funded under...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Family Resource Centres (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: In 2008, funding to the Family Resource Centre (FRC) Programme was provided by the Family Support Agency (FSA), which was under the aegis of the former Department of Social and Family Affairs. Responsibility for the FSA transferred to the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs in 2010 and then to my Department when it was established in 2011. The FSA was dissolved in 2014,...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Family Resource Centres (6 Sep 2019)

Katherine Zappone: Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, administers the Family Resource Centre (FRC) Programme. In Budget 2019, the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs secured an increase of €1.5 million in funding for the FRC Programme. This brings the overall financial allocation for the Programme to €18 million. This additional funding is being used to: - Increase core funding to each of...