Written answers

Tuesday, 28 July 2020

Department of Children and Youth Affairs

Childcare Services

Photo of Kathleen FunchionKathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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718. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the estimated additional cost of the roll-out of Aistear across the childminding sector. [18236/20]

Photo of Roderic O'GormanRoderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Aistear, the national curriculum framework for early childhood, was developed by the National Council for Curriculum Assessment (NCCA). Since its development 10 years ago it has been used as a tool to support quality on many levels across the range of services that support the learning and care of children from birth to 6 years old. Its roll-out, which is supported by the Aistear-Síolta Practice Guide (published in 2015), is embedded in initial/pre-service training programmes (leading to qualifications at Levels 5, 6, 7 and 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications/NFQ) and in a range of training courses aimed at the continuing professional development of early learning and care practitioners. Its roll-out is also embedded in the mentoring work carried out by the Better Start Quality Development Service, and in the inspections of early learning and care services that are carried out by both Tusla (the statutory regulator for early learning and care and school-age childcare services) and the Inspectorate of the Department of Education and Skills. Given the diverse mechanisms through which Aistear is rolled out, it is not possible to determine the current cost of roll-out.

Progress continues to be made in the on-going roll-out of Aistear across the sector. Recent initiatives include on-going work by both Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) and the Department of Education and Skills to reform and strengthen the training awards at Levels 5 and 6 on the NFQ and undergraduate degree programmes. 

The National Síolta Aistear Initiative (NSAI) is a collaboration (begun in 2016) between my Department, the Department of Education and Skills, Better Start, and the NCCA. The purpose of the NSAI is to support the implementation of both Aistear and the Síolta national quality framework. Training courses delivered within the NSAI include both foundation or introductory courses that give the background and fundamentals of Síolta and Aistear (4 workshops, delivered through the City and County Childcare Committees) and the Aistear and Play CPD programme (which is delivered by the Better Start Quality Development Service. The budget for the NSAI is €500,000 per annum, which includes the cost of developing resources to support the on-going roll-out of Aistear and Síolta.

The Aistear and Play CPD programme has been delivered by Better Start since March 2019. It consists of 5 individual workshops (two and a half hours each) and two onsite support visits with an early years mentor to support services to apply the learning from the training course within their setting. In 2019 the National Síolta Aistear Initiative offered 60 Aistear and Play CPD courses, with 15-20 participants per course.  Roll-out in 2020 has been interrupted by Covid-19. 

Evaluations of the Better Start Quality Development Service and of the Aistear and Play CPD programme are currently underway. The results of the evaluations will help to identify the next steps in the roll-out of Aistear.

Most childminders are exempt from regulation, as a result of exclusions set out in the Child Care Act 1991. While many mechanisms through which Aistear is rolled out (including the Aistear Síolta Practice Guide and training courses leading to QQI awards) are available to childminders, neither the Better Start mentoring programme nor the Aistear and Play CPD programme have targeted childminders. The Draft Childminding Action Plan, published for public consultation in August 2019, proposed the extension of regulation and supports to all paid, non-relative childminders on a phased basis.

Photo of Kathleen FunchionKathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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719. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the estimated first and full-year cost of employing an extra 26 aftercare workers. [18237/20]

Photo of Roderic O'GormanRoderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I wish to inform the Deputy that my officials have asked Tusla to respond directly to you on this matter.

Photo of Pearse DohertyPearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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720. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if funding will be provided to allow a child of a front-line worker (details supplied) in County Donegal to remain in a childcare setting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18579/20]

Photo of Roderic O'GormanRoderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The goal of the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) is to empower pre-school providers to deliver an inclusive pre-school experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the ECCE universal pre-school programme and reap the benefits of quality early learning and care. AIM is a child-centred model, involving seven levels of progressive support, moving from the universal to the targeted, based on the needs of the child and the pre-school service.

Additional assistance can be sought in the pre-school room where this is critical to ensuring a child’s participation in the ECCE pre-school programme. In line with emerging best practice to support the integration and independence of children with a disability, AIM does not fund pre-school Special Needs Assistants (SNAs). Rather, it provides financial support to the pre-school provider, which can be used either to reduce the adult-to-child ratio in the pre-school room or to buy in additional assistance to the pre-school room. Accordingly, AIM Level 7 assistance is a shared resource for the pre-school setting. 

AIM is intrinsically linked to the ECCE programme and since its implementation in 2016 AIM supports are provided based on the 38 week ECCE programme year from September to June. As the ECCE term 2019/20 is now finished, AIM funding for additional assistance in the ECCE pre-school room is therefore not currently available until the next ECCE programme year recommences in late August.

Funding schemes that provide subsidies for places in early learning and care and school-age childcare services - the National Childcare Scheme and legacy funding schemes (CCSP and TEC) - recommenced on 29 June and continue to operate during the summer months. Information on eligibility is available from my Department's website and from local City and County Childcare Committees.

I am very conscious of the unprecedented environment some children with disabilities are currently facing due to the impact of COVID-19. A key element of AIM is the advice and guidance given by Early Years Specialists in Better Start to service providers who are supporting the participation of children with disabilities in their settings. In recognition of the challenges facing families and service providers at the current time, my Department has worked with Better Start to make the advice and guidance provided by Better Start's Early Years Specialists available to any early learning and care or school-age childcare service that is catering for a child with a disability during the summer months.

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