Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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109. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the way officials in her Department identify persons suitable for the after school childcare initiative; the way the initiative is promoted to those potentially suitable for the scheme; and the reason there has been a very low take up of the initiative with only 42 children currently availing of the initiative despite 6,000 places potentially having been made available by her Department in conjunction with the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. [21922/14]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The after-school child care scheme (ASCC) is a self-selecting scheme and is available nationwide in all the Intreo and Social Welfare Local Offices. Information on ASCC is provided in advance to jobseekers at various points during their engagement with the Department and other organisations. Examples include the following;

- Group Engagement;

- Signing or making new claim (e.g. posters/leaflets in the office);

- Meeting with Case Officers (activation or walk-in);

- On request from client;

- Childcare providers;

- County Childcare Committees.

All staff in the Department’s local offices are aware of the supports available through this scheme and there are designated officers within each office to advise customers of their eligibility for the scheme and to take them through the application process. The Department is also in regular contact with lone parent and unemployed advocacy groups, all of whom have been informed of the scheme.

There are a number of possible reasons for the low take up of the scheme to date. The scheme is still a pilot and is the first scheme of its type provided by the Department in conjunction with the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA). It is being continuously reviewed based on feedback from the local offices, customers and childcare providers. One of the original drivers for the introduction of the scheme was to assist lone parents, who were due to lose entitlement to one parent family payment on foot of the age reduction reforms, to make the transition to a jobseeker’s scheme and hopefully to employment. In order to address the caring responsibilities of this group of customers the jobseeker’s transition arrangement was introduced. This in effect allows these customers to work part time while their children are in school and still receive a jobseeker’s payment subject to them satisfying the jobseeker’s allowance means. The introduction of this arrangement is likely to have significantly reduced the need for childcare from this cohort thereby reducing the demand for the ASCC childcare places.

Many parents may have a preference for other family members or for friends to provide childcare to their children rather than seeking to place their children into the care of a community or private crèche.

Finally, the scheme is aimed at supporting customers into employment and so take-up is directly linked to the availability of suitable employment opportunities.

The scheme was funded from savings of €14 million from the Department. Due to the low take up of places the €14 million funding has been re-focused for 2014 to support customers on community employment (CE) programmes via the childcare education and training scheme (CETS).

The €14 million budget has been re-allocated in 2014 as follows:

The afterschool childcare scheme is available nationally in 2014 with funding of €2 million ring-fenced for these customers. The scheme including the allocation of places and funding, will continue be monitored and reviewed during 2014.