Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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702. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if his Department and Tusla are considering an action plan to address the significant drop in sponsorship referrals for children at risk. [16724/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The sponsor arrangements in place under the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) represent a significant step forward from the similar arrangements that were in place for the legacy schemes (CCS/CCSP) which the NCS replaces. It puts in place clear referral criteria and legislative underpinning for such referrals.

It is not readily possible to compare the legacy scheme referrals with NCS referrals as the legacy schemes referrals were not routinely tracked. However research complied in 2017 indicated that approximately 200-300 children were sponsored by TUSLA to the CCS/CCSP childcare schemes in the previous year.

We can confirm that over 670 children have benefitted from Tusla sponsorship referral under the National Childcare Scheme since its launch in November 2019.

Notwithstanding this my Department in conjunction with the referring bodies are focussed on ensuring all children who need such referrals have access to those referrals.

My Department actively supports Tusla in their role as Sponsor Body under the National Childcare Scheme. Ongoing training is available to all Sponsor Bodies, and Tusla is availing of this training. Training takes place via webinar and frequently asked questions are updated based on the questions asked during training and this is shared across Tusla staff. My Department, in conjunction with Tusla, reviews the training material, as well as the communications process to ensure that training reaches all of the relevant Tusla staff.

Training is also available to all childcare providers, through local City/County Childcare Committees nationwide. Childcare providers have been encouraged to engage with their local CCCs should they become aware of any challenges in accessing sponsor referral pathways.

In addition, following the disruption to the sector from Covid-19 following the Christmas period, my Department reached out to Tusla during the Covid-19 crisis to ensure that vulnerable children were supported at this time. Tusla agreed to put processes in place expedite sponsor applications received in this period for children identified as being vulnerable. This has ensured access to early learning and care services for vulnerable children throughout the latest Covid-19 restrictions.

Officials in my Department will continue to monitor the growth of the NCS and the embedding of the sponsor referral process within the relevant bodies.

Should the Deputy be aware of any families or providers who may be experiencing challenges in the sponsor process, they are advised to immediately contact the local CCC. Contact details are available at myccc.ie