Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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1775.To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if his Department will increase funding to Tusla - Child and Family Agency to reduce the current excess threshold of cumulative weekly mileage and revise the approach that delineates the purpose of travel to enable foster carers to meet with needs of children in their care. [31480/24]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I am aware that travel costs have been highlighted by foster carers as an increasingly significant financial outlay in respect of the care provided to some foster children. The shortage of foster carers can result in children and young people being placed some distance away from their families, community and schools. Further, I am conscious that a cohort of foster carers have highlighted that they are required to drive foster children significant distances for access visits, for school, or for medical appointments and that under the current mileage scheme, significant excesses apply, before mileage payments are made by Tusla.

I can inform the Deputy that I have been engaging with Tusla around the issue of travel costs incurred by foster carers. Tusla has been engaging with my Department in reviewing the current supports available to foster carers in respect of mileage payments. I can further advise that officials from my Department met with their counterparts from Tusla earlier this month, 3rd July 2024, to progress the development of an improved mileage scheme.

Follow up actions to develop the new scheme are still underway and engagement between my Department and Tusla is ongoing with the aim of improving the supports foster carers receive when facilitating exceptional travel requirements for foster children.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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1776.To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will increase funding to Tusla - Child and Family Agency for the uniform expansion of regional therapeutic teams; and to outline the increase, by county, in tabular form. [31481/24]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I recognise the importance of the therapeutic supports provided by Tusla teams to vulnerable children.

I will work with Tusla and with my Government colleagues, through the Estimates process for 2025, which has recently commenced, to secure additional funding for Tusla. Details of funding increases will be announced as part of Budget 2025 in October.