Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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294. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to address the concerns of family resource centres that they will not have enough space to provide group activities given the impact of Covid-19; the assistance that will be provided to ensure they comply with all health and safety guidelines while continuing to be able to cater for service users; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27122/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, is responsible for the administration of the Family Resource Centre (FRC) Programme which involved the allocation of approximately €18m in 2020 towards the core costs of 121 existing FRCs.

My Department and Tusla have secured €0.62m in Dormant Accounts Funding for 2021 to support the Family Resource Centre (FRC) Programme. This funding will allow established FRCs to carry out maintenance works, to purchase essential equipment and furnishings, and undertake additional works and service developments required to respond to the impact of COVID-19. Tusla will invite FRCs over the coming months in each area to make an application for funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund.

I appreciate the excellent work that FRCs have been providing to families and communities across Ireland. I recognise the effort FRCs have made over the past 14 months by continuing to make their services, physically and virtually, available during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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295. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to provide for the additional demand for mental health services at family resource centres; if he plans to provide supports to expand these services in line with demand; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27123/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The provision of mental health services is a matter for the Minister for Health.

Tusla, the Child and Family Agency provides funding to counselling services, through a network of community-based counselling service providers and Family Resource Centres that offer the following types of counselling/psychotherapy and support:

- Marriage and Relationship Counselling;

- Child Counselling;

- Rainbows peer support programme for children;

- Bereavement Counselling and support on the death of a family member.

Tusla funding to such counselling services in 2020 was some €6.7m. This funding is provided where there is a genuine need and demand for services and where they can be provided at low cost to adults, couples, children, young people and families.

Tusla, in partnership with the HSE Health and Wellbeing and Community Healthcare, also supports the Mental Health Promotion Project across 6 Health and Wellbeing Community Referral Sites in Cork and Kerry. The Tusla budget for this project in 2021, which supports FRCs in promoting best practice in relation to suicide prevention and the promotion of positive mental health, is €100,000.

Tusla acknowledges the importance of these services at this time, given the current pressure on families, the impact of bereavement and grieving; and the need to support access to services at reduced cost given the sudden financial pressures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

I recently met with the Family Resource Centre National Forum (FRCNF) and they described first-hand the surge in demand that FRCs are managing due to an increase in mental health issues within their communities. I recognise the ease of accessibility of FRCs for families which can provide early intervention counselling within the community at a low cost.

While FRCs are continuing to provide counselling services they can also assist and direct families in accessing mental health supports from other agencies.

Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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296. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on the way short-term funding for services provided by family resource centres such as counselling and therapy inhibits same from being able to guarantee long-term services; the way short-term funding of this nature can have an impact on the progress being made by persons availing of mental health supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27124/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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As Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, I value all the services that Family Resource Centres (FRC) provide across the country. I greatly appreciate FRCs providing low-cost counselling, play therapy and other therapeutic services to support children and families within the community. It should be noted that overall responsibility for mental health services lies with the Department of Health.

I am conscious of the challenges posed for service planning by the annual nature of the budgetary cycle. The management of grant funding is governed by Department of Public Expenditure and Reform Circular 13/2014 Management of and Accountability for Grants from Exchequer Funds which requires that all grants be expended by year end. While I would welcome further discussion in relation to this, the Public Spending Code and a move to providing long term or multi-annual funding is a matter for central Government and will require cross-government and legislative consideration.

Since 2014, the number of grant funded organisations, including FRCs and other community and voluntary organisations funded by Tusla under section 56-59 of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013, has increased, as has the total amount of funding provided. My Department and Tusla have worked to promote investment in FRCs and to develop a commissioning approach to ensure that funding and resources available to children and families, are used in the most effective, equitable and sustainable way possible.