Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 36: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the amount of money made available by his Department and the agencies under his Department to offer parenting courses in view of the reported high demand for such courses (details supplied); the role he envisages for his Department in providing these type of supports for parents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7978/07]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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My Department provides funding to a range of groups and organisations involved in the provision of supports and information to parents and families who are in receipt of a social welfare payment. In 2006, over 400 projects or individuals were assisted through the Family Services Project (FSP) at a total cost of €2.2 million. Courses supported included family support programmes and personal development programmes, the majority of which incorporated a parenting element. The overall objective of the FSP is to provide a high quality information service on the range of supports available to families from State agencies and the community and voluntary sector with a particular emphasis on the agencies and services available locally. In addition to the FSP my Department also administers the Special Projects Fund, which is used to provide grants to projects run by third parties to help welfare recipients as well as members of their families to improve their employability through education, training and personal development. My Department sees the Fund as a means of supporting innovative responses to increasing employability and tackling social inclusion. There was €2.8 million available under the Fund in 2006 and over 160 projects were funded. The two funding streams have been amalgamated with effect from the start of this year to provide greater flexibility in the funding streams available to assist individuals and families to enhance their employability through education, training and personal development opportunities. The overall fund is administered by Facilitators based in my Department's Local Offices who work in conjunction with local Voluntary and Community groups and statutory organisations. The fund is operated in a manner that enables a quick response to identified customer needs.

My Department's role in this area is to increase the capacity of those in the most difficult circumstances by improving their self-esteem and personal and family situations through the training, developmental and educational opportunities made available. In 2007 over €5.6 million is being made available through the amalgamated Fund. The Family Support Agency, which comes under the remit of my Department, has statutory responsibility to promote and disseminate information about issues such as parenting and family responsibilities. In 2007, the Agency has been allocated €35.339 million of Government funding to support families and has a mission "to promote family and community well being through the provision of appropriate supports and services to families". A crucial element of this will be the investment of over €18 million in the Family Resource Centre programme which seeks to help combat disadvantage by improving the functioning of the family unit. The emphasis in the projects is on the involvement of local communities in developing approaches to tackle the problems they face and on creating successful partnerships between the voluntary and statutory agencies in the area concerned. The services provided and activities supported by the resource centres are designed to meet the needs of the local community. They include the provision of parenting courses, education and training opportunities for parents and active dissemination of information on a range of issues affecting families and local communities.