Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the extent, if any, she has had discussions with other Departments in the context of the coordination of children and youth services and support of parents in such a context; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57042/12]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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As Minister for Children & Youth Affairs, it is part of my remit to work with other Ministers to ensure the best outcomes for children and young people.

Budget 2013 announced two new areas where this partnership approach has been adopted. One of these concerns the provision of subsidised after-school childcare places for low income parents entering the workforce, and this will be the result of a collaborative approach between my Department and the Department of Social Protection.

This joint initiative will provide over 6,000 afterschool childcare places for children in primary school. This will begin with a pilot scheme in early 2013. The places will be targeted at low-income families and will support parents availing of an employment opportunity. The funding provision for this initiative will be €14 million in a full year. Officials of both Departments will work closely on the operational details of the scheme and the estimated costs in 2013 will be reviewed in this context.

The second cross-departmental initiative announced in the Budget that I have been involved with, and which will be led by my Department, is an Area-based Approach to Child Poverty, for which €2.5 million has been provided for in the 2013 Estimates.

This initiative will build on and continue the work of the Prevention and Early Intervention Programme (PEIP) which has supported projects in Tallaght, Ballymun and Darndale, co-funded by my Department and Atlantic Philanthropies. These projects involve a range of pilot programmes to improve outcomes in areas such as literacy, speech and language, parenting, health and pro-social behaviour and are currently being evaluated by national and international experts. It is important that we mainstream the learning from these pilot projects so that proven and effective supports for children and families can be delivered right through the country, including through the range of services to be provided by the new Child & Family Support Agency.

The new initiative reflects the Programme for Government commitment to adopt an area based approach to child poverty in co-operation with philanthropic partners, drawing upon best international practice and existing services, to break the cycle of child poverty where it is most deeply entrenched.

In line with this commitment, my Department, in conjunction with officials of the Tánaiste, the Ministers for Social Protection, Environment, Community & Local Government, and Education & Skills, will begin working early next year with a view to expanding the number of project sites from 3 to 6.

The new initiative will not simply be a continuation of the PEIP scheme but will instead seek to implement programmes which have already been evaluated and proven to work in improving outcomes for children and families at risk of disadvantage.

At a local level, my Department has responsibility for the development of Children’s Services Committees (CSCs). These bring together a diverse group of agencies in local county areas to engage in joint planning of services for children. These include representatives from the HSE, local authorities, An Garda Síochána, the VECs, the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals, the Irish Primary Principals Network, the NEWB, and other organisations which provide services to children and young people. There are a total of 16 such committees at various stages of development.

The membership of CSCs includes senior managers from the major statutory providers of services for children and families. The Chairperson of each CSC is either the HSE Local Health Area Manager or the Area Manager for Children and Family Services and it is their function to ensure that the CSCs secure better developmental outcomes for children through more effective integration of existing services and interventions at local level.

The forthcoming Children and Young People's Policy Framework will address the further development of these Committees.