Speech by Dr James Reily T.D. Minister for Children and Youth Affairs – Dáil Eireann 15th October 2014

Deputies, it is clear that this Government’s plan for economic recovery is

working, and the economy is moving in the right direction. The core aim of

this year’s budget is to secure and solidify that recovery. However, we are

aware that the economic recovery remains fragile. This Government’s

determination to ensure that the mistakes of the past are not repeated has

meant that some difficult choices have had to be made in framing this

budget.

 

The 2015 Estimate for my Department demonstrates that, while operating

under difficult budgetary constraints, this Government is strongly

committed to delivering important reform and service developments to

support Ireland’s children and families.  I am fully committed to ensuring

real reform of child welfare and protection services and making this

country a better and safer place to be a child or young person.

 

There are two elements to my Department’s Vote, which amounts to €1,010

million in 2015. The Estimate for next year contains significant additional

resources to fund the services and programmes provided by the Child and

Family Agency. This amounts to €635m, representing 63% of the Vote. The

balance of €375m relates to other programmes funded directly by the

Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

 

 

 

The Child and Family Agency

The establishment of the Child & Family Agency, or Tusla, in January 2014,

saw the delivery of a key Programme for Government Commitment involving the

integration of services previously delivered by three organisations – the

HSE, the National Educational Welfare Board and the Family Support Agency.

 

In and of itself, this is a significant challenge, even more so when we

consider that the Agency is currently providing social work services to

almost 20,000 children, 6,500 of whom are in care – 93% of these with

foster parents – and over 1,600 of whom are young people benefiting from

aftercare services.

 

The staff and Board of Tusla, along with the staff in my own Department,

are to be commended on the professional manner in which they have risen to

this challenge, with limited resources. I appreciate the high level of

commitment they have demonstrated to building a better service, from which

all our children and families benefit. Consequently, increasing the

operational budget for Tusla was a key priority for my Department in this

year’s Estimates process.

 

In 2015 the Agency will have a budget of €635m including over €12m in

capital funding. This is an increase of €26m, or 4.3% over the 2014

provision.

 

While I understand that this level of funding cannot address all of the

challenges the new Agency faces in doing its work, I believe that this

additional funding will allow the Agency not only to alleviate the

pressures on the range of services currently in place, but also to build on

the extensive programme of reform across the range of services for children

and families which is well underway.

 

My Department will continue to work closely with the Board and management

of the Agency to monitor performance and governance issues. In this regard,

internal efforts to improve cost control and to achieve the full benefits

of cost containment measures initiated in 2014 are expected to be seen in

2015 – particularly in respect of legal costs. I don’t want to be spending

tax payers money on legal services which don’t advance the cause of

children.

 

The Agency is also working to develop and implement a Commissioning

Strategy which will be designed to ensure that the services it funds are

clearly focussed on specific outcomes for children and families and are

demonstrably cost-effective and efficient.

 

As regards capital funding, the 2015 provision for the Agency is €12.4m, an

increase of €5.6m over 2014. Among the important projects that will be

advanced, as part of the Agency’s capital programme, are the next phase of

the roll-out of the National Child Care Information System and the related

upgrade of the Agency’s ICT infrastructure. The 2015 provision will allow

for some upgrading of special care facilities.  There will also be

resources available to support minor capital development works during the

course of 2015, including maintenance of existing facilities.

 

Reform

Reform is a common thread running through all areas of my Department’s Vote

in 2015.

 

 

Tusla reform

In the Child and Family Agency the reform programme will continue.

 

Good progress is being made in advancing a wide ranging and necessary

programme of reform of child welfare and protection services. Particular

areas of reform which are receiving priority attention include:

 

– a stronger focus on the alignment of resources and processes to ensure

that referrals are subject to initial assessment, prioritisation and

response in line with national policies;

– further development of the In-take/Assessment policies to support and

respond to increasing numbers of reports and to ensure a continuing focus

on the implementation of standardised business processes;

– finalisation of plans for the roll-out of a model of out-of hours service

throughout the country;

– the development of a Quality Assurance Framework;

– piloting and initial roll-out of the National Child Care Information

System.

 

 

Reform of Guardian Ad Litem Services in Proceedings under the Child Care

Act 1991

When making Orders in child care proceedings that best serve the welfare

and well-being of children, the Courts must carefully weigh up all

considerations in the balance. To inform this process from the child’s

perspective, the Court may appoint guardians ad litem to represent the

child, and they provide a very valuable service in that regard.

 

However, it is also an expensive service, and to ensure that we have a

service that is both high quality and cost-effective, my Department is

currently working on proposals for the reform of guardian ad litem

services.

 

These proposals cover a range of matters, including the basis on which the

service is operated – for example, the status and role of guardians ad

litem, and their qualifications – as well as the financial sustainability

of the service. I intend that legislative proposals for this reform will be

available early in the coming year.

 

 

Key Developments for 2015

Department of Children and Youth Affairs

The 2015 Estimate provision contains a sum of €375m that will allow my

Department to deliver a significant level of public services, as well as a

number of new policy measures which I will address over the remainder of my

statement.

 

 

 

Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures

Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures is the first national policy framework

for all children and young people, from birth to age 24. To maximise

resources and achieve the best outcomes, it takes a cross-government

approach to working for children and young people. To bring the commitments

in this framework to fruition, my Department is currently developing an

Implementation Plan through engagement with partners across a range of

government departments and statutory agencies. We are also in the process

of establishing an Advisory Council, which will harness expertise and

experience both within the NGO sector and academia as well as from

independent experts and individuals who have specific expertise in working

with and for children and young people. I am confident that the Advisory

Council will play a crucial role in realising the goals of Better Outcomes,

Brighter Futures.

 

Children First Legislation

The Children First Bill, 2014 – which will put elements of the Children

First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children – on a

statutory footing, was published in April of this year. The core aim of

this Programme for Government commitment is to raise awareness of the

issues of child abuse and neglect and to clarify the role we all have to

play in addressing these, in order to improve the care and protection of

all of our children. The Children First Bill aims to make the best

safeguarding practice the cultural norm for anyone and everyone who works

with children. It has completed Second Stage in the Dáil, and I anticipate

Committee Stage will be scheduled shortly.

 

I want to reassure the House that, in recognition of the fact that this

legislation will create new statutory obligations, the commencement date

will be scheduled to ensure that the range of sectors involved have

adequate time to prepare for implementation.

 

 

Funding for youth services

I am pleased to say that there will be no reduction in  funding for youth

services in 2015, which was a key priority for youth organisations. My

Department administers a range of funding schemes and programmes to support

the provision of youth services to young people throughout the country

including young people living in disadvantaged communities.  I have

recently had the opportunity to meet with a number of the organisations

involved, and was most impressed by the range and diversity of their work.

Funding from my Department supports youth work provision to some 380,000

young people, involving approximately 1,400 staff in 477 projects, with the

vital support of 40,000 volunteers nationwide.

 

I  would like to express my thanks to these generous and selfless

volunteers without whom we could not hope to reach so many young people. In

recognition of this very valuable contribution, I am pleased to say that

€50m has been allocated in 2015 to support youth services throughout the

country.

 

Looking to the future – National Youth Strategy

Looking to the future for youth services in Ireland, our focus is to build

on the many positive steps which have been taken, particularly in the area

of quality standards in services for young people. In this regard, the

development of a new National Youth Strategy for 10-24 year olds is a

priority for me. The new Youth Strategy will cover the period to 2020.

This is one of a number of whole of government strategies under Better

Outcomes, Brighter Futures which sets out what we want to achieve for young

people during this important developmental period. I will shortly be

announcing details of a consultation process to capture views on issues to

be addressed in the National Youth Strategy and will provide key

stakeholders, and particularly young people, with the opportunity to

reflect on the emerging priorities.

 

Value for Money and Policy Review of Youth Programmes

The consultation will include discussion on the recently completed Value

for Money and Policy Review of the Youth Programmes that target vulnerable

young people who are at risk of disadvantage. The Review makes

recommendations for the future operation of the youth programmes that will

shape their development in the years ahead to ensure quality, effective,

value-for-money services that are evidence based and secure the best

outcomes for young people.  I am keen to ensure that  youth organisations,

youth officers  and others,  who are involved in the provision of services

for young people, have the opportunity to consider the Review’s

recommendations  and how they may be actioned in the  roll-out of the new

Youth Strategy in the years ahead.

 

Commitment of Government to Youth Services

I know that the past few years have been challenging for youth services and

that reduced resources have impacted on the plans of many communities for

their young people. I want to ensure, notwithstanding the significant

challenges we currently face, that all of us work together so that youth

development is embedded in our actions and in activities for young people

and that all our young people have brighter futures.

 

Area Based Childhood (ABC) Programme

The Area Based Childhood (ABC) Programme (2013–2016) is an area-based

approach which was developed to help reduce child poverty by improving

outcomes for children. The ABC Programme is being jointly funded by my

Department and Atlantic Philanthropies. The Programme runs over the period

2013-16, with total funding of €30m.

 

The Programme for Government committed to adopting an area-based approach

to child poverty, drawing upon best international practice and existing

services, to break the cycle of child poverty where it is most deeply

entrenched.

 

Reflecting my commitment and that of the Government to this work, Exchequer

funding for the Programme will increase by €750,000 in 2015, bringing the

total exchequer commitment to €4.75m.

 

Early Years Policies and Programmes

This Government recognises the vital importance of investment in the early

years of children’s lives. We know that supporting parents is an important

element of this, and to that end a number of childcare programmes targeted

at low and middle income parents in education or training and those

returning to paid employment are provided. In 2015, my Department will

provide €260m to support the childcare sector to enable children and

parents access high quality and affordable childcare.

 

The Community Childcare Subvention programme, involving a network of 900

community childcare services, has provided a major source of support to

disadvantaged families in recent years.  Despite the difficult budgetary

situation, we have maintained funding for this Programme in 2015.  We will

also continue to provide supports to parents returning to work, education

or training through the Training and Education Childcare Programmes.

 

The introduction of the free pre-school year under the Early Childhood Care

and Education (ECCE) programme was a major milestone in the development of

childcare services. The ECCE programme builds on the established evidence

of the value of this type of investment – that high quality formal

childcare is linked with cognitive and developmental gains, particularly

for children from more disadvantaged backgrounds. This universal and free

programme is accessible to all children and ensures that a significant

number of children can avail of quality pre-school services who wouldn’t

otherwise be in a position to do so. The total number of children

benefiting from support under the Childcare Programmes is more than

100,000.

 

To yield these positive outcomes, we know that quality provision is

crucial. In that regard, a range of reforms under the Early Years Quality

Agenda aimed at improving the quality of services in the early year’s

sector is underway.  New Standard Operating Procedures have been introduced

to address issues of inconsistency and to provide greater clarity for early

years service providers. The Department is also progressing a comprehensive

Early Years Quality Agenda which is designed to improve quality standards

in pre-school services.  Legislation to underpin a number of reforms under

the Quality Agenda has been introduced.  This legislation provides a

statutory basis for the registration of early years services, and will

introduce a range of new enforcement powers for Inspectors at a

pre-prosecution level.  Regulations to give effect to the legislative

changes are expected to be published soon.  Under the proposed new system,

all early years services will have to be registered in order to operate.

 

Inspectors will be empowered to specify improvement conditions which a

service must comply with, and the power to remove registration will be

available.   Protocols will be developed with the Early Years Inspectorate

to ensure that consistent action is taken in response to findings of

non-compliance with the Regulations.  A calibrated approach will be taken

which will enable more decisive action to be taken in such cases.

 

Five additional Early Years Inspectors have been recruited to strengthen

early years inspections and it is expected that there will be a total of 49

Early Years Inspectors in place by the end of 2014. New National Quality

Standards for early years services will be published shortly.  These

Standards will provide the basis against which services will be inspected

and reported.  Early years services will be supported in working towards

higher standards of quality based on clearer criteria for measuring

compliance levels.

 

In addition, a National Early Years Quality Support Service is being

introduced to provide mentoring support to early years services.  30

graduates in early childhood care and education are being recruited under a

national management structure.  These experts will work directly with

services to improve quality and assist them in implementing the Síolta

Quality Framework and the Aistear Curriculum.  In addition, a new practice

manual – which will bring the key principles of Síolta and Aistear together

in a more user-friendly way – is being developed by the National Council

for Curriculum Assessment under the aegis of the Department of Education

and Skills.

 

Within the broader context of quality improvement, and in conjunction with

my colleague the Minister for Education and Skills, the Inspectorate of the

Department of Education and Skills (DES) has been asked to lead and

organise focussed inspections on the quality of educational provision in

early childhood education settings participating in the Free Pre-school

Year programme. The inspections will be based upon best practice in early

years settings in Ireland and abroad and will focus on a number of key

areas, including:

 

– Quality of provision for children’s learning and development

– Quality of children’s learning experiences and achievements

– Quality of management and leadership for learning.

 

A key aim of the education-focussed inspections will be to promote

continuous improvement in early childhood education settings. The

inspectors will seek to affirm good practice and to provide sound advice

and recommendations for improvement.

 

 

National Children’s Detention Facility

I warmly welcome the fact that Budget 2015 has allocated a further €19

million in capital investment funding towards the completion of the

National Children’s Detention Facility project currently underway in

Oberstown, Lusk, Co Dublin.

 

The practice of detaining children in adult prison facilities is not one a

modern society should tolerate, which is why ending this practice is a core

Programme for Government commitment.  Under the Children Act, 2001 children

are defined as all young people up to the age of 18 years.  Responsibility

for 16 year old boys was assigned to the children detention system in 2012

and despite the constraints on the public finances of recent years, this

Government approved the necessary investment package to enable the transfer

of responsibility for all children under the age of 18 years to the

children detention school system.

 

Work is currently nearing completion on the first three residential units

which will facilitate the transfer of responsibility for 17 year old boys

from the adult prison system to the children detention schools.

 

In addition to the capital project, the allocation of €1.8m in current

expenditure in 2015 will provide for the increased operational costs of the

extended Oberstown facilities under its expanded role.  I welcome the

arrival of the 25 new care staff to the Oberstown campus this week for

initial training and orientation.  This is the first increase in staffing

for the children detention school system for many years.

 

The legal framework for detention of children is also being updated and

Heads of a Bill for amendments to the Children Act 2001 were recently

approved by Cabinet.  Drafting work is now underway with a view to its

enactment before the end of 2014.  The Bill will provide for the legal

amalgamation of the three existing children detention schools, and the

repeal of all current legal provisions which permit the detention of

children in the adult prison system.  I am committed to working with campus

management and the Oberstown Board to ensure that the current change

programme in the children detention school system is completed

successfully.

 

Conclusion

In conclusion, there is no doubt but that 2015 will be another busy year

for my Department and its agencies and I intend to build on the hard work

and effort by all involved in working with children and families – both

State and voluntary organisations – in order to deliver on this

Government’s commitment to fundamentally reform the delivery of child and

family services.