4.066 (Anne Rabbitte) - To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs whether her department will be covering PRSI and USC payments in respect of the top up which they are providing to childcare providers under the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme and the Wage Subsidy Childcare Scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. 4.07 (Anne Rabbitte) - To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs whether the Department of Children and Youth Affairs will be covering PAYE and all other tax obligations in respect of the 30% wage top up which they are provided to childcare providers under the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme. The Deputy will be aware that I launched the DCYA Temporary Wage Subsidy Childcare Scheme (TWSCS) on 15 April. The TWSCS supplements the Revenue operated Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS). Participants in my Department’s TWSCS with staff also benefit from the provisions of Revenue’s scheme. This includes a substantial reduction in PRSI costs. Employee PRSI will not apply to the TWSS subsidy or any additional payment by the employer (including payments under my Department’s TWSCS). Employer’s PRSI will not apply to the TWSS subsidy and will be reduced from 11.05% to 0.5% on the additional ‘top-up’ payment from the employer (including payments under my Department’s TWSCS). As a result, under the combined TWSS and TWSCS, PRSI costs are eliminated for the employee and reduced considerably for the employer. It is not possible for my Department to cover any tax liabilities (such as income tax or USC) that may arise under the top-up being provided by the TWSCS. As is normally the case, it is a matter for the employer to deduct and remit income taxes to Revenue under the PAYE system in respect of the top-up portion of the scheme and ultimately for the employee to discharge their tax liabilities. 3.420 (Anne Rabbitte) To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to clarify the number of childcare providers who have signed up to her Department’s Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme, broken down by service type (full-time, sessional etc) and county if possible. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented situation that has required a series of emergency responses from the Government. I launched the Temporary Wage Subsidy Childcare Scheme (TWSCS) on 15 April. This scheme is a very significant measure to support the sector and reflects the particular impact the pandemic has had on early education and childcare providers. I can confirm that as of 29 April, 3,684 childcare provider have signed up to participate in the TWSCS 1,029 of these are community services and 2,655 are private services. The breakdown by service type is outlined below. These figures were compiled using information from the 2018/2019 Annual Early Years Sector Profile Report by Pobal. It should also be noted that the figures for each service type below in the county list includes services that may provide multiple service types. For example, the figure for full time services will include services that also offer part time or sessional care. Number of Services by Organisation Type Organisation Type Number of Services Community 1,029 Private 2,655 Total 3,684 Number of Services by County and Service Type Number of Number of Number of County Services - Full Services - Part Services - Time Care Time Care Sessional Care Carlow 16 17 38 Cavan 17 22 36 Clare 34 37 91 Cork 72 97 292 Donegal 34 40 75 Dublin 301 313 556 Galway 67 80 154 Kerry 37 47 93 Kildare 56 59 146 Kilkenny 33 35 69 Laois 15 15 43 Leitrim 11 12 27 Limerick 40 42 111 Longford 11 16 26 Louth 32 39 82 Mayo 17 19 77 Meath 33 32 131 Monaghan 32 39 49 Offaly 14 15 46 Roscommon 19 26 42 Sligo 27 26 49 Tipperary 42 52 119 Waterford 25 28 67 Westmeath 23 33 57 Wexford 32 43 78 Wicklow 16 29 104 Total 1,056 1,213 2,658 4.205 Mary Lou McDonald To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to clarify if Tusla social workers can facilitate video meeting between birth parents and their children who are in care whose face to face visitation agreements cannot take place due to the current public health movement restrictions. I am conscious that disruption to family contact, also referred to as access, can be a source of considerable anxiety and distress for children in care and their families. I wish to assure the Deputy that the importance of maintaining contact and family relationships (where it is in the child’s best interest) is paramount in the decision making of Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, at all times. Tusla is using a range of creative methods to support families in having contact with children. Social workers have access to Microsoft Teams to facilitate video-based access, and can also support direct video calls through platforms such as FaceTime and Skype. Foster carers and residential staff have been asked to facilitate more frequent digital contact for children where possible. Tusla have also clarified that, if the parent or parents do not have a phone or capability to video conference, social workers will work with the parents to identify alternative solutions. There may be some situations where social workers determine that a physical access visit should occur. For example very young children may not be capable of coping or meaningfully engaging with video calls. All planned access is subject to a risk assessment, on a case by case basis. Where visits are postponed, I have been informed by Tusla that every effort will be made to reschedule as soon as it is safe and practicable to do so. My officials continue to engage with the relevant stakeholders in relation to the impact of current restrictions on children and families. I wish to advise the Deputy that I have requested that, in the context of lifting restrictions, and when the HSE has reached capacity both in terms of testing and getting the lab results, that parents resuming access visits with their children be prioritised for testing. Testing would not be a pre-requisite for resumed access visits, but could be undertaken on a priority basis in recognition of concerns for foster families and birth families of the need to protect themselves from contracting COVID 19. 4.207 (Maurice Quinlivan/ Kathleen Funchion) To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if people, who were availing of the ECCE childcare scheme this year, will be entitled to an additional ECCE place for their child next year, if they feel their child is not ready for primary school now as a result of the closure of pre-schools due to COVID-19; and will she make a statement on the matter? The Deputies are aware that the COVID-19 Pandemic has created major challenges for Ireland. The sudden closure of centre-based Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School Age Childcare (SAC) services on 12th March was an unexpected but necessary move to safeguard public health in Ireland. I am acutely aware of the particular impact the pandemic and the emergency measures have had on children. The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme is a free two year universal pre-school programme available to all children within the eligible age range. A child must be aged 2 years and 8 months on or before 31 August in order to be eligible and can’t turn 5 years and 6 months during the programme year. There is no provision for a third year. For some children with special or additional needs, where attending preschool five days a week is not feasible, there is a facility to apply for an overage exemption. This overage exemption allows them split two years over three years. It was initially introduced when there was only one year of ECCE and before the Access and Inclusion Model was introduced to ECCE, providing a range of supports to children with disabilities and the pre-school. The overage exemption is governed by three guiding principles as follows: The child not reaching 6 years of age during the exemption year to comply with the school staring age (as per Educational Welfare Act, 2000) A Letter of recommendation supplied from a specialist (NB: Not a GP/Public Health Nurse) ECCE Allocation taken-i.e. if a child has already availed of two years they will not be eligible. The DCYA works jointly with the Department of Education and Skills (DES) with regards to matters such as this. The DES endorses the policy approach that it is in children's best interest to enrol in primary school with their peers, and to transition to becoming a teenager with their peers. This was the finding of research commissioned jointly by both Departments in 2018 from the National Disability Authority (NDA) which was published in March 2019. Parents who have concerns over their child’s transition to school should, in the first instance, discuss this with the school. They may also contact the National Council for Special Education for advice on available supports for their child. 4.208 (Kathleen Funchion) To ask Minister for Children and Youth Affairs how much has been spent on the Covid Early Years Measures in her Department. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented situation that has required a series of emergency responses from the Government. The closure of childcare services by Government on March 12 caused considerable anxiety and stress regarding the potential loss of income and future sustainability.