John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 746: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the way moneys from the Education Finance Board (details supplied) for survivors of residential care abuse is being disbursed; and the way a person can apply for funding under this scheme. [9405/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Indemnity Agreement concluded between the State and religious congregations in June 2002 provided a fund of €12.7 million for educational programmes for former residents of institutions and their families. Pending the establishment of this fund on a statutory basis, my Department introduced an ad-hoc grants scheme, which was administered by the National Office for Victims of Abuse (NOVA) between 2003 and 2006. Some €2.5 million was paid in education grants under this scheme to former residents and their families.

The scheme was put on a statutory basis last year following the establishment of the Education Finance Board under the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Amendment) Act 2005. The Board was formally established on 17th February 2006 and I appointed Mr Dick Langford, former CEO of City Of Cork VEC, as Chairperson along with eight other Board members, four of whom are former residents.

After deducting some €2.5 million expenditure incurred under the ad-hoc scheme and allowing for interest of €0.75 million accruing on the €12.7 million fund, the Board had a net fund of almost €11 million at its disposal on establishment. This fund is being managed by the National Treasury Management Agency and monies are drawn down from the fund to meet the ongoing costs of the Board in administering the grants scheme.

The functions of the Education Finance Board are laid down in Section 25 of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Amendment) Act 2005. The principal functions are:

to pay grants to former residents of institutions and their relatives to assist them in availing of educational services

to determine and publish the criteria by reference to which it will make decisions on applications for the payment of such grants, and

to provide information in relation to educational services in respect of which grants are payable.

In November 2006, the Board published new criteria for the provision of grants to former residents and their families. Eligible claimants can obtain grant assistance to support themselves in both formal and non-formal educational and personal development activities. While the level of grant payable in each case will depend on the particular educational service being accessed, it will be possible for a former resident to receive up to €12,500 overall in assistance and for eligible family members to receive up to a further €12,500 in aggregate. The Adult Education Guidance service, located throughout the country, is available to eligible applicants to assist them in exploring possible educational/personal development opportunities under the scheme.

The Board's offices are located at Frederick Court, 24/27 North Frederick Street, Dublin. Application forms and the grant criteria can be downloaded from their website www.educationfinanceboard.com or by contacting the Education Finance Board at the following numbers: Phone No: 01-8745708, Fax No: 01-8745709, E-mail: info@educationfinanceboard.com