Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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43. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the steps she will take to address the shortage in foster carers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43789/17]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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We need a regular supply of foster carers to provide a quality service for children. A small number of areas have problems in recruiting enough local foster carers. Other areas have good availability, but not all foster carers will have the skills needed for children with more complex needs.

Foster carers are acknowledged as the backbone of our child care services, looking after 92% of children in care. This compares with 74% in the UK. We have an extensive foster care service which provides care to a range of children, including children with emotional and behavioural issues and with disabilities. Foster care is also the placement of choice for older children and those in need of emergency placements, sibling groups and separated children seeking asylum.

Ensuring that we can recruit sufficient numbers of foster carers and the ethnic diversity needed to provide this variety of placements is challenging, but required for good matching between child and foster carer.

I please to say that I have secured an additional €40m for Tusla in the Budget for 2018, which will be used to target areas of identified need. Specific to the foster care service is the recruitment of social workers to recruit and support foster carers. Tusla are also receiving additional funding to establish a dedicated telephone service to provide out of hours social work support to foster carers for the first time.

International research tells us that the recruitment of foster carers requires a number of focussed strategies. Tusla employs a variety of methods in ongoing campaigns to attract potential foster carers. Examples include online and newspaper campaigns, information evenings, and, most successfully, focussed local recruitment drives involving local foster carers.

The outcomes for children in foster care in Ireland are much praised by professional colleagues abroad, especially in terms of school completion, stability, family centred care and progress in third level education.

I am proud of this record and I want this good work to continue.

I appeal to anyone with an interest in fostering a child to visit the Tusla website for answers to a range of questions a potential carer might have, including how to apply to become a foster carer.