Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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85. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to advise on the number of applications received for inclusion in the National Family Resource Centre Forum; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32387/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The number of applications received for inclusion in the Family Resource Centre Programme is forty-nine.

The expansion of the Family Resource Centre Programme was made possible in Budget 2025 because my Department secured additional funding for the Programme. This funding will allow for membership of the Programme to increase from 121 members to 126 members in 2025. This is in line with the current Programme for Government commitment to increase funding and expand the capacity and network of Family Resource Centres.

I very much welcome this development, and have stated on many occasions my admiration for the broad scope of the work being done by Family Resource Centres in communities around the country. I extend my best wishes to all the groups/organisations that have expressed an interest in becoming members of the Family Resource Centre Programme.

Applications for Programme membership were open from 1st May to 30th May, 2025. The application and selection processes are being managed by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. Tusla has responsibility for the day-to-day administration of the Family Resource Centre Programme with funding provided by my Department. The selection process is merit-based using the published criteria, and this will ensure all applications are treated equitably against the criteria established by Tusla. The successful applicants will be allocated core funding of €160,000 for each full year of operation.

The successful applicants will receive support from Tusla, and I expect that the Family Resource Centre National Forum will also be of great assistance welcoming new members to the Forum and guiding them in establishing their operations and aligning them with the ethos of the Programme. I expect that the new Family Resource Centres will be up and running over the coming months. The five communities welcoming new Family Resource Centres will benefit in the way that current communities have benefitted from the Centres that serve them, providing a range of family support and other services across the life cycle.