Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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608. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to take any particular or specific measures to combat issues arising from reports her Department may have received from school authorities throughout the country and particularly in counties Sligo and Leitrim appertaining to the health and welfare of children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14981/17]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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Tusla has advised that its Educational Welfare Service (EWS) has responsibility to ensure that every child attends school regularly, or otherwise receives a certain minimum education, to support regular school attendance, tackle problems of absenteeism and to provide an educational welfare service. The EWS receives referrals from school authorities, parents and others relating to concerns for the educational welfare of individual children. When a young person is referred to the EWS by a school, parent or another agency the initial work of the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) is to assess the nature, scope and depth of the problem.

The EWS operates specific programmes supporting children, parents and their schools. The Home School Community Liaison Scheme (HSCL) provided to 400 DEIS schools to facilitate positive relationships between parents and their children’s school. The School Completion Programme (SCP) provides intensive supports to students at risk of early school leaving to enable these students to complete their education. Both of these programmes intervene at the earliest stage when school attendance or school participation difficulties emerge in order to support parents, students and schools to address any difficulties early. When these interventions fail to address the presenting problem a referral is made to the Statutory Education Welfare Service.

The EWS has also advised that any concerns about children and families referred to Tusla from school authorities in Sligo /Leitrim /West Cavan are assessed to determine the needs of the children involved and the appropriate intervention. The EWS operates an intake service throughout Sligo /Leitrim /West Cavan and nationally to deal with any welfare concerns regarding children.