Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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310. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if her attention has been drawn to the discrepancy in the guidelines for the 2017 youth grant scheme (details supplied ; if she will ensure that the recent changes to the 2017 criteria are changed back to the 2016 scheme criteria, including that 75% of the club or group members must be under 21 years of age; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23708/17]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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My Department administers a range of funding schemes and programmes to support the provision of youth services to young people throughout the country including those from disadvantaged communities. The funding schemes support national and local youth work involving approximately 1,400 youth work staff working in youth services and communities throughout the country.

I am pleased to confirm that I have allocated an extra €5.5m in current funding to support the provision of youth services in 2017. This will bring the total youth funding by my Department to €57.4m, an increase of 10% over last year's allocation. The additional funding is being used for programmes that target disadvantaged young people and to assist national youth organisations in their work to support local voluntary youth services.

After a period of consultation with key stakeholders it was agreed that in line with the National Youth Strategy 2015–2020 it would be a condition of the Local Youth Club Grant Scheme that at least 75% of the club/group membership should be between the ages of 10 and 21. The clarification will ensure that the Scheme will have the maximum impact on the targeted cohort, as identified in the National Youth Strategy 2015 - 2020.

The Local Youth Club Grant Scheme supports youth work activities at a local level. These grants are made available to all youth clubs and groups through the local Education and Training Boards. The scheme is open to some 1,600 youth groups and clubs, with an estimated 89,000 club members around the country. The scheme, which is open to new entrants, is advertised locally and applications for funding are invited by the Education and Training Boards from local groups in their respective areas. Each year, some 600 local youth clubs benefit from the scheme. In 2016, €1.065m was allocated to this scheme. In 2017, I have provided an additional 10% in funding to the scheme, bringing the total allocation to €1.1715.