Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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212. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to invite service providers to provide their feedback and observations as part of the current review and evaluation of the AIM. [7685/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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An independent evaluation of the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) commenced in December 2020 and will be undertaken during 2021. The evaluation is being carried out by a consortium led by the University of Derby.

The Evaluation will involve a range of methods to gather data. As part of the Evaluation, surveys of both parents and service providers will be undertaken. In addition, both qualitative and quantitative research will be undertaken to consider the perspectives and experiences of children, parents, providers, and a range of key stakeholders involved in designing and delivering AIM supports and other relevant State-funded supports for early learning and care settings.

Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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213. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if the review and evaluation of the AIM will reconsider the qualification levels of AIM workers and SNAs for early years education (details supplied); and if the SNA course will qualify them for these positions, making it easier for early years providers to recruit and retain staff. [7686/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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In line with emerging best practice to support the integration and independence of children with a disability, the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) does not fund Special Needs Assistants (SNAs). Rather, Level 7 of AIM provides financial support to the pre-school provider, which is 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.

For this reason, staff who are supported with AIM Level 7 funding must adhere to the same qualification criteria as their colleagues in the early learning and care setting, as prescribed in Regulation 9 of the Early Years Services Regulations 2016.

I am committed to supporting providers to respond to current challenges. In designing responses, however, it is important that any measures considered are proportionate to the problem they seek to address and that wider impacts are carefully considered. In that regard, it is important to stress that the minimum qualification requirement to work directly with children in an early learning care service was introduced in 2016 in order to improve the quality of provision and to achieve better outcomes for children.

To remove this minimum qualification requirement could be contrary to the best interests of children and the vision for the sector that is outlined in First 5, the whole-of-Government strategy to improve the lives of babies, young children and their families. Such a move could be a significant backwards step in efforts to improve quality outcomes for children and could only be considered if there were a very strong evidence base requiring a change.

Individuals who wish to work directly with children in a pre-school service must hold at least a major award in Early Childhood Care and Education at Level 5 on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ), or a qualification deemed equivalent. My Department has published a list of qualifications that meet this regulatory requirement. If an individual's qualification does not appear on the list they may apply to my Department for assessment of equivalence of their qualification.

Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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214. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if the review and evaluation of the AIM will explore an apprenticeship-style model of recruitment in the early years sector (details supplied). [7687/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) was launched in 2016 to enable the inclusion and meaningful participation of children with disabilities in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme. An evaluation of AIM began in December 2020. The evaluation is expected to:

- Provide a detailed understanding of AIM, having regard to the vision, current approach, governance, coverage and external context.

- Ascertain the impact and effectiveness of AIM from the perspective of all stakeholders – investigating insofar as possible outcomes, efficacy, efficiency, adaptability and sustainability.

- Provide an overall assessment of AIM, considering strengths, challenges and opportunities for learning.

The focus of the evaluation is the AIM programme itself. Exploration of recruitment methods in the sector fall outside the scope of the evaluation.

It should be noted that new criteria and guidelines for professional awards in early learning and care at levels 5 through to 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications have recently been published, and new education programmes are currently being introduced on foot of the criteria and guidelines. Guidance has been given on the duration and content of programmes, including requirements for practice placements.

In addition, officials in my Department are currently in the process of developing a new Workforce Development Plan, in collaboration with the Department of Education. The Workforce Development Plan, which will be completed in 2021, will set out plans to raise the profile of careers in the sector and establish role profiles, career pathways, qualification requirements, and associated policy mechanisms, along with leadership development opportunities, and will work towards a more gender-balanced and diverse workforce.

While the Workforce Development Plan may consider the broad relevance of an apprenticeship model to the sector, the development of an apprenticeship relies on the formulation of proposals by employers and education institutions, and approval by the Apprenticeship Council. The consideration and potential introduction of a new apprenticeship model for early learning and care practitioners is therefore not solely a policy matter for my Department.