Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Lynn Ruane ran for bringing forward these statements today. I also acknowledge Shane Griffin, and I thank Senator Fiona O'Loughlin for mentioning Shane. It was Shane who informed me the first day ever about what it was like to be a child in care. He helped me in my previous role as spokesperson on the children's committee. I would not have come with all of the knowledge and, therefore, I had to reach out to have a better understanding. I thank many people who informed me but Shane in particular played a huge role. I thank Senator O'Loughlin for that.

Senator Conway used the word "percolates", which is a great word. The Senator is correct that the voice of the child should percolate through all Departments, regardless of their area of responsibility.

I thank Senators for their contributions and my colleague, the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, for his opening statement. I also acknowledge the work of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, which always keeps the voices and rights of children front and centre through many different mediums, which is greatly appreciated. A number of years ago I attended an Empowering People in Care, EPIC, function In Dublin Castle. I always remember a performance piece at the end were a girl came in and performed a rap. I cannot remember the name of the lady but she performed a piece around the number 6,144, which was the number of children in care that year. It was quite an emotional piece to sit through because in her mind, she was a number. She was one of the number of children who were held in the care of the State. On that day, that is what outlined for me my role and responsibility as spokesperson for children. As a collective we are all responsible for children in care and it is our role and responsibility to advocate for the rights of those children in care because we are their voice, throughout our roles, be it in the Seanad, the Dáil or on a committee. At all times we need to hold everybody to account to ensure that what is in Constitution is protected, and that their voices are protected and heard, and action is taken at all times. I believe every Senator and Deputy works collectively to ensure that voice and that piece is protected. I listened carefully to what was said and am pleased to note the high level of cross-party interest in this important matter. I will respond to a few of the Senators on the some of the key issues. On the issue of aftercare services within Tusla, I recognise that a consistent and comprehensive aftercare service will support successful outcomes for young people leaving care who are beginning to embark on independent life from the age of 18. As such, it is essential the aftercare service reach as many eligible young persons as possible. The current statutory framework has been in place since 2017 and a review of its operation is timely. The Department and Tusla are engaging on a gap analysis of the aftercare service, which will give the Government information and evidence relating to the reach of the service and identify any areas of improvement.

I echo the remarks made earlier by the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, when he noted the statutory framework for the aftercare service is relatively new. It is essential a review of the current service be undertaken prior to any consideration of changes to the core eligibility threshold. The priority must be that the most vulnerable will have access to the services they need. The Childcare (Amendment) Act 2015 places a statutory obligation on Tusla to assess the needs of young people who are eligible for aftercare. In some instances, young people leaving care may wish to engage in full-time education and training. Research in this area has shown doing so can improve outcomes in later life. Tusla seeks, therefore, to reduce any financial barriers these young people may face in embarking on further education or training by assisting with maintenance payments, with supports for education continuing up to the age of 23.

As the Minister noted, however, care leavers are just as diverse in their requirements as they were when entering State care. It is not the case that all young persons will want to enter full-time education or training once they have left State care or that they will feel ready to do so at the age of 18. This is why Tusla allows for a degree of flexibility with regard to the aftercare allowance, which may be paid to eligible care leavers who embark on qualifying education and training at any time before the age of 21. Like me, Senator Warfield was a member of the previous children's committee and one of main issues that came across at that committee related to the choice young people face at the age of 18. Not all of them might want to go on to education but those who do need a second chance. It took my son two terms to decide what course he wanted. We should not say people have only one chance in the education system. We should allow everybody the right to fail or make a mistake and have a second chance, and that applies to children in aftercare too. I believe passionately that when we are examining the review, that should be taken into consideration. When I talk to foster parents, that is often their fear. They fear that if the child they care for did not participate in education and wants to change their mind, he or she will not have that option. That is something we should be very mindful of.

The aftercare service also supports young adults who are not in education and training in accessing any relevant financial allowances and supports to which they may be entitled. Access to an aftercare worker is available to those individuals up to 21 years of age as required and there is no age limit on access to Tusla's aftercare drop-in centre. If the young adult is not progressing to education and there is not the safety net of extending his or her experience with the foster family, it is incumbent on Tusla to ensure there will be access to housing and to wrap-around support. In some cases young people feel they left home with all their belongings in two black bags, as has been noted at children's committee meetings. The wrap-around service must, therefore, also mean protection to ensure that when a young person leaves one place of accommodation, the right of access to another place will be looked after and secured. It is mind-boggling enough for an adult to have to have it all worked out, with all the supports of a family environment, when transitioning into seeking accommodation. Imagine what it is like and how tormenting it must be for a young person who has been supported by the hands of the State to have to access accommodation with little or no family support. It must be very challenging and I remind Tusla that this very significant piece has not worked well in the past.

Aftercare drop-in centres provide essential day-to-day supports to young people leaving care, such as assistance in completing the relevant grant applications and advice on housing entitlements. Care leavers who are not in education or employment may also be eligible for full jobseeker's allowance instead of the reduced rate of €112 per week ordinarily paid to those under the age of 25. Securing accommodation can be a concern for young people as they leave care and transition into independent living. The vast majority leave care at 18 with stable accommodation in place and remain there, living with their former foster carers. A small cohort, however, of vulnerable care leavers may face an increased risk of homelessness. Currently, those care leavers who are at risk of homelessness are assisted by Tusla in partnership with various Departments and other State agencies. This includes finding accommodation in supported lodgings, sheltered housing or facilitated independent living. Since 2017, care leavers have been included as a separate category for funding under the capital assistance scheme. It must have been two years ago that on "The Late Late Show", there was a young man who was trying to complete his leaving certificate but his placement had fallen through, and he had to try to access accommodation at the same time as his studies. He was successful in finding accommodation but it was testing in his leaving certificate year. Even so, he achieved a very successful leaving certificate.

Finally, I acknowledge the work of social workers during Covid in supporting young people in care and in providing an agile approach to ensuring everyone got that support during the pandemic. Our social workers play a phenomenal role and, in many cases, are very challenged and restricted because their caseloads are so high.