John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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709. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs following the publication of the action plan for housing and homelessness four months ago the status of the progress made to date on action 1.4 to continue operating the Dublin region protocol relating to child protection and welfare concerns; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35033/16]

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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710. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs following the publication of the Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness four months ago the status of the progress made to date on action 1.5; the supports and initiatives that have been established for families in emergency accommodation to mitigate the challenges that such parents and children face; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35034/16]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 709 and 710 together.

Homelessness among children and families remains a serious problem. In September there were 1,173 families in emergency accommodation, including 1,568 adults and 2,426 dependents. I am committing to supporting implementation of Rebuilding Ireland: the Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness. We have made some progress in this regard, but more remains to be done.

In relation to Action 1.4 of the Plan, the joint protocol between Tusla and the Dublin Region Homeless Executive (DRHE) governing child welfare and protection matters has been fully operational since approval in June 2016. A review of the protocol has already commenced and will be concluded early December 2016. It is intended to replicate this protocol across the State. However, the current protocol would not necessarily fit as a national template as organisational set up differs across the country. Accordingly, the protocol will need to be tailored to individual local authorities. This work will take place on a phased basis commencing in Q1 2017 and will continue throughout the year.

Action 1.5 commits to strengthening the supports and initiatives that have been established for families in emergency accommodation to mitigate the challenges that such parents and children face. My Department and others have undertaken a number of initiatives as part of this Action.

The DRHE is working to provide free public transport for family travel and for school journeys for those homeless families in the Dublin Region who are residing in hotel accommodation. Each family is being given five 24-hour family LEAP cards, which will be valid for use on all Dublin transport systems, allowing for family days out at weekends or during holiday periods. Distribution of the family cards is almost complete. This will be quickly followed by the distribution of the school journey cards.

My Department is funding research, commissioned by Focus Ireland, to identify issues regarding access to food and potential nutritional impacts on families in emergency homeless accommodation.

My Department is also enhancing access to early years services for homeless families through a new Community Childcare Subvention Scheme for homeless children. It will provide part-time childcare for children aged between 0 and 6 years of age. It is planned to launch the Scheme next January.

Also, I recently secured the agreement of the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government that the provision of accommodation for young people leaving State care would be eligible for funding under the Capital Assistance Scheme (CAS) operated by his Department. My Department and Tusla will work to ensure that any accommodation proposed, and ultimately delivered, will be provided with the appropriate levels of protective factors for the young person making the transition to independent living.

Many of the remaining child-focussed actions in the Action Plan are being advanced by Tusla and progress is being made on several fronts. This year, Tusla provided funding to Focus Ireland for additional child support workers to assist with the challenges facing families in emergency accommodation and I will be requesting Tusla to examine the possibility of funding for similar initiatives in 2017.

John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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711. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs following the publication of the action plan for housing and homelessness four months ago the status of the progress made to date on action 1.6; the details of the safety guidance and voluntary code for child safety in emergency accommodation that has been put in place; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35035/16]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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I have asked Tusla to respond directly to the Deputy with the most up-to-date information.