Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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60. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the way in which he intends to allocate increased funds for school meals to schools following the recent increase in allocation in the budget; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35714/16]

Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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100. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if a centre (details supplied) has applied recently for funding for free school meals; if so, the date it has applied; the outcome of each application; if there were rejections, the reasons for same; and if it will be granted for 2017. [34882/16]

John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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300. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the way in which he intends to allocate increased funds for school meals to schools following the recent increase in allocation in the budget. [36186/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 60, 100 and 300 together.

The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food to schools and organisations benefitting over 200,000 children at a total cost of €42 million in 2016. As part of Budget 2017, I announced an additional €5.7 million for school meals which will benefit over 50,000 children.

Additional funding is being provided to DEIS schools already participating in the scheme to provide breakfast and lunch to pupils. The Department has also written to some 50 DEIS schools not participating in the scheme and invited them to join. To date, 11 additional DEIS schools have expressed an interest in joining the scheme.

The additional funding provided in Budget 2017 also provides some provision towards the extension of the scheme to breakfast clubs in non-DEIS schools from September 2017. This is the first time in many years that increased payments will be provided to schools outside of DEIS.

More than 50,000 children will benefit from the increased funding providing breakfasts and lunches. Of these, some 35,000 extra school breakfasts will be provided in non-DEIS schools from the start of the new school year and will be expanded in future years.

The Youthreach centre referred to by Deputy Crowe, made an application for school meals funding on 30 June 2016. As the centre is not a DEIS school it was not considered for funding for the current academic year and this information was communicated to the organisation’s Co-ordinator.

Officials in my Department are engaging with colleagues in the Department of Education and Skills in examining options regarding the provision of the additional funding to schools for the next school year. Priority will be provided to those schools where there is most need and the availability of funding for Youthreach centres can only be considered in the context of the take up of the support by these schools.