Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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27. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on whether the school completion programme is sufficiently funded; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45937/18]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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The School Completion Programme (SCP) continues to deliver a valuable service for some of our most vulnerable young people at risk of early school leaving throughout the education process.

It was established in 2002 and became a programme operating under the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) programme in 2005. Responsibility for the National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) which included the SCP was transferred to my Department on its establishment in 2011. Operational responsibility for the SCP was transferred to Tusla, the Child and Family Agency on its establishment in 2014.

The annual SCP fund is currently 24.7m. My Department works with the Educational Welfare Service of Tusla to ensure necessary resources are available to support the programme and to ensure staffing levels are sufficient to deliver a high quality service to those young people most at risk of early school leaving. 

In recognition of the need for a strong policy platform for educational welfare services, including the School Completion Programme, I have requested my officials to establish a Task Group to support the further development and integration of these services. The work of this group is now commencing and I am eager to ensure that output will result in a clear blueprint for the development of the School Completion Programme so that its reach, resources and impact are maximised in supporting young people at risk of early school leaving.