Results 1-20 of 32 for carers speaker:Patrick Costello

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Supplementary)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Supplementary) (28 Nov 2023)

Patrick Costello: ...is needed for foster care it is very welcome in the context of the need to increase payments, but perhaps I am a little naive to hope that it is also a reflection of an increased number of foster carers. There is an absolutely huge need to improve the conditions of foster carers in order that we can recruit more foster carers. We absolutely need more foster carers. The Minister spoke...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Budget 2024 (18 Oct 2023)

Patrick Costello: 233. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will expedite the proposed Budget increase for foster carers to 1 January 2024, in view of the fact that this group have not had an increase in their allowance for over a decade. [45560/23]

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Child Protection: Discussion (20 Sep 2023)

Patrick Costello: ...Groups such as Empowering People in Care, EPIC, have been making comments and statements and providing analysis. There is an increasing number of special placements and a reducing number of foster carers. There is a broader placement issue in terms of special care. I have spoken to Ms Murphy about this previously. I will eventually come to questions; I promise that. Something I am...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Child and Family Agency (13 Jun 2023)

Patrick Costello: 1086. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the total number of foster carers in Tusla broken down in tabular form by local area office; the number who have an allocated fostering link worker; the number not allocated a fostering link worker; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28231/23]

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: General Scheme of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (9 May 2023)

Patrick Costello: ...of the law. These are not care orders or voluntary care agreements, but we look the other way to a certain degree. How we can capture them? How we can ensure that they are minimised or that the carer is given supports and the young person is allocated a social worker? I would also like to hear from the Department about the 12-month limit. If we look at section 16 of the existing Act...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Foster Care Issues: Discussion (28 Mar 2023)

Patrick Costello: I thank the Minister for his opening statement. I will start with what he just said about recognition. That is ultimately what foster carers want. He said in his statement that they are the backbone of alternative care. They are the backbone of child protection services. Without them, we would be lost. Ultimately, they want recognition for the work they do. This takes many forms, such...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Foster Care Issues: Discussion (28 Mar 2023)

Patrick Costello: ...be put to it as well and that the answer is shared with the committee. It would be important for us to understand this matter and for Tusla to examine and understand it. When recruiting foster carers there are expressions of interest and the number of expressions of interest drops down a little to actual applications. The number of people who move the application right until the end...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (2 Feb 2023)

Patrick Costello: 324. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the actual cost of carer’s allowance for 2022, broken down by month, specifying full rate and half rate, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5354/23]

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (2 Feb 2023)

Patrick Costello: 332. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will examine the potential of removing the means tested income threshold for full-time carers, despite increasing the disregard limits in June 2022 (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5351/23]

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (2 Feb 2023)

Patrick Costello: 333. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of applications for carer's allowance and the number of accepted applications in 2022, broken down by month, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5353/23]

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Alternative Aftercare Services for Young Adults: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Patrick Costello: I wish to make a point to get clarity. Does the agency still need to consent even if the foster carer has received enhanced rights?

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Alternative Aftercare Services for Young Adults: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Patrick Costello: I will make one point. Ms Duggan spoke about the professionalisation of foster carers, which reminded me of something several foster carers said to me to the effect that if the weekly allowance were to be turned into an annual salary, it would amount to approximately €18,500, which is not much of a salary given the level of work they do. If we are going down that route of classifying...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Alternative Aftercare Services for Young Adults: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Patrick Costello: We are here until 6 p.m. One of the issues with recruitment is trying to get potential carers through the foster care committee. One of the things we spoke about at the foster care hearing was with regard to private arrangements and these sorts of things. They sometimes come up because a child can be in a good enough place but we know the person will not pass the committee. Are the...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Foster Care: Discussion (20 Sep 2022)

Patrick Costello: ...worker I signed off on much more than €6,000. A placement for €6,000 would make my principal social worker smile. It is very cheap. It is important to differentiate between the foster carers who are with a private agency, who are just as dedicated and committed and provide the same quality of service, from the private foster care company that exists to make profit. The...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Foster Care: Discussion (20 Sep 2022)

Patrick Costello: ...about the number of social workers Tusla needs, that there is no workforce planning. There is no demand anticipation, which would help with a target for the number of social workers and foster carers that need to be recruited. I think that as well as the legislative requirement for independent advocacy for both children in care and for parents, some element of workforce planning and...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Foster Care Issues and the Loss of Positive Care Services: Engagement with Tusla (10 May 2022)

Patrick Costello: ...so if I am to leave time for answers, I had better take a deep breath and speak quickly. Fostering is the backbone of our child protection system. We are lucky to have such high numbers of foster carers for children in care, as Mr. Gloster has pointed out. I have met excellent foster carers in my time, both in Tusla placements and in private placements. However, the system is...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Children in Care (22 Feb 2022)

Patrick Costello: 568. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will reform the foster care review programme whereby Tusla requires foster carers to pay for their own medical examination. [9153/22]

Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 40 - Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (Revised)
Vote 25 - Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Revised) (8 Feb 2022)

Patrick Costello: ...recent years there has been a significant growth in the private services used by Tusla in residential and foster care. These are more expensive services than we get from Tusla units and foster carers. They are more vulnerable to price increases and shocks. Also, private residential units are not covered by HIQA so we do not have the same level of oversight. There is general inflation...

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Children in Care (25 Jan 2022)

Patrick Costello: 456. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of relative and non-relative carers, respectively approved in each month for the past 36 months by Tusla area. [3221/22]

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (19 Jan 2022)

Patrick Costello: 884. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will examine the system in which persons in receipt of carers allowance are unable to avail of enhanced illness benefit whilst out of work with Covid-19 yet out-of-work persons can claim the pandemic unemployment payment whilst also claiming carer’s allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter....