Martin Conway (Fine Gael)
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The Cathaoirleach did great work in the whole area of fisheries when he was a Deputy.

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Kyne, to the House. This is the first time I have had an opportunity to welcome him here. I congratulate him on the outstanding job he is doing.

Before the crash, significant funding was made available from central Government for playgrounds which was accessed primarily by local authorities. Clare County Council gave funding to community groups through a partnership approach, which was successful in developing and building playgrounds. Other counties adopted different models.

Are there any plans to have any further funding schemes or streams available from the Department of Children and Youth Affairs for local authorities to build new playgrounds in areas of population and areas which have not benefitted from them before? If such funding is made available, will there be a condition that the playgrounds have to be accessible to people with various forms disability? Universal design playgrounds are possible. Over the past several years, the people who supply equipment to playgrounds, particularly in the UK, have done enormous work to ensure equipment is universally accessible. Any funding made available for playgrounds should be predicated on them being accessible to people with disabilities.

Many existing playgrounds need to be refurbished and retrofitted. It is not beyond reason for the scheme to be put in place to facilitate local authorities in this regard. If that is to happen, the equipment to be purchased should be of universal design nature too.

I am not sure over the past several years what funding from central Government, if any, has been available for playgrounds. The funding provided has been spent wisely and the playgrounds are extremely busy. The playground in Lahinch, County Clare, has thousands of children using it every month. What is the Minister's position on this? The universal design model needs to be embraced and encouraged.

Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Martin Conway for putting down this Commencement matter which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Katherine Zappone.

Play is an internationally recognised area of importance for the well-being of children. The child's right to play is enshrined in Article 31 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which recognises the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts. Better Outcomes Brighter Futures, the national policy framework for children and young people, 2014-2020, recognises play and recreation as one of the ways in which the aim that all children will be active and healthy, with physical and mental well-being, will be achieved.

The provision of public play and recreation facilities is primarily the responsibility of local authorities. The Department of Children and Youth Affairs also has a role in this important area. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Katherine Zappone, is committed to ensuring that children's right to play is promoted and protected. Since 2013 the Department of Children and Youth Affairs has administered the capital grant scheme for play and recreation. The scheme provides for new and innovative projects which can include new facilities, equipment, designs. The utilisation of non-traditional play spaces, or the refurbishment or upgrading of existing play and recreation spaces and facilities, is also provided for and encouraged. The total amount of funding available under the scheme each year since 2013 is €250,000, with a maximum grant of €20,000 to any local authority.

Funding criteria for the scheme were developed in conjunction with the local area play and recreation network. Established in 2012, the network is made up of staff with responsibility for play and recreation in their local authority area. The purpose of the network was to introduce a more co-ordinated and interagency approach to achieving the main goals of the play and recreation policies, at both national and local level.

Senator Martin Conway asked if the provision of financial support is conditional on the playground being universally designed to allow children with various disabilities access the equipment. The Minister has confirmed that one of the key criteria for funding under the capital grant scheme is that all facilities and equipment funded must be accessible to children and young people with special needs.

Other criteria applied to applications include play and recreation spaces and facilities must be available for use by all children and young people in the locality at times when they are free to use them, namely outside of school hours; all facilities and equipment must be youth-friendly and safe; children and young people must be consulted about the project for which funding is requested; and confirmation that a "No Smoking" sign is prominently displayed in the facility for which funding is awarded must be provided. A further requirement of the scheme is that the local authority in which the playground is situated must provide matched funding for the project. This can be in the form of land, equipment, staff or additional funding.

The Department of Children and Youth Affairs has recently commissioned a review of the public provision of play and recreation facilities. The findings from this research will inform the next steps in developing play and recreation policy. Future developments in this policy area will involve all key stakeholders, including children and young people, in the deciding the future direction to be taken.

Martin Conway (Fine Gael)
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That is a comprehensive reply. Will the Minister of State ask officials in the Department of Children and Youth Affairs to give me a contact person in this review to whom I can make a submission? I know many people who would like to make their views known to the review process.

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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I am sure the Minister of State will do that.

Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I will ask the officials and the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to revert to the Senator on that.