Minister announces funding for Local Area Child Poverty Action Plans
From Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
Published on
Last updated on
• Minister O’Gorman has awarded €378,000 to establish four pilot Local Area Child Poverty Action Plans to improve outcomes for disadvantaged children, young people and their families under the What Works initiative, funded under Dormant Accounts.
• Ireland’s National Action Plan under the European Child Guarantee commits to establish four pilot Child Poverty Local Area Action Child Poverty Action Plans in Children and Young People’s Services Committees (CYPSC) areas.
Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, today announced the allocation of €378,000 under What Works to four Children and Young People’s Service Committees working in collaboration with their corresponding Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) to research and pilot Local Area Child Poverty Action Plans. Following a call for applications and selection process, 23 applications were received, and four applications were selected:
• Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown and Wicklow Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Dun Laoghaire Rathdown and Wicklow Local Community and Development Committee
• Kildare Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Kildare Local Community and Development Committee
• Monaghan Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Monaghan Local Community and Development Committee
• Tipperary Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Tipperary Local Community and Development Committee
The objective of these pilot plans will be to improve outcomes for disadvantaged children, young people and their families by first gaining a detailed understanding of the child poverty problem in each area, and then using this information to promote experiences of enhanced service integration.
Funding is being made available through the What Works prevention and early intervention initiative which receives its funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund (DAF). The DAF is managed by the Department of Rural and Community Development.
Announcing the fund, Minister O’Gorman said:
“The What Works Initiative, funded under Dormant Accounts, aims to take a coordinated approach to enhance capacity, knowledge and quality in prevention and early intervention for children, young people and their families, with a focus on those at risk of developing poor outcomes.
These four projects are undertaking important initiatives to better support innovation and collaboration between local organisations to enhance communications, knowledge sharing and joint working to respond to child poverty issues at local level. I look forward to seeing these pilots implemented and making real difference to the lives of children, young people and their families”.
Welcoming the announcement, the Taoiseach said:
“I am delighted to see significant funding awarded to four pilot Local Area Child Poverty Action Plans. I am particularly encouraged to see that all four pilots will explore how to enhance access to vital supports in the areas of early years, food and fuel poverty, for those facing challenging circumstances, and for disadvantaged families with neurodivergent children”.
We are fortunate to have many outstanding family and children’s services in Ireland, but sometimes they can be difficult to access and navigate, especially for families in poverty. These pilots will allow us to learn from innovative and practical action and will move us closer to making sure service integration means every child gets the service they need, when they need it – a key priority area in my Child Poverty and Well-being Programme Plan.”
As Minister for responsibility for the Dormant Accounts Fund, Minister O’Brien stated
“I make it an absolute priority to ensure that the fund is used to support communities and services most in need. The issue of poverty, and child poverty in particular, informs almost every aspect of my work which is why I’m pleased today to be able to provide funding for this important initiative to tackle child poverty.
My Department also has strategic responsibility for Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) who collaborate with the Children and Young People’s Service Committees (CYPSCs) in many respects to support the planning of services in a local area. Today’s announcement, is a clear example of this strong partnership with the overall objective of improving access to services that support disadvantaged families and children in their local areas.
This funding will help achieve that.”
Under this scheme, Children and Young People’s Service Committees (CYPSC) and their Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) were invited to submit a joint application for up to €100,000 in funding to design and implement a pilot plan that will respond to their local realities and contexts while utilising existing co-ordination structures.
Funding is awarded to:
1. Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown and Wicklow Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Dun Laoghaire Rathdown and Wicklow Local Community and Development Committee – €100,000.
The pilot focuses on early childhood (pregnancy to age 4) and aims to improve service coordination and family support, addressing systemic and intergenerational factors contributing to child poverty.
2. Kildare Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Kildare Local Community and Development Committee – €100,000.
The pilot aims to improve access to services for disadvantaged families with neurodivergent children by piloting Community-Based Occupational Therapy in Family Resource Centres; Flexible Referral Criteria; providing simultaneous support for professionals, parents, and children to build understanding and skills across all parties involved; piloting Plural Practice Model using recreational activities tailored to each child’s needs to improve social communication and emotional regulation.
3. Monaghan Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Monaghan Local Community and Development Committee -€93,000.
The pilot aims to address issues such as intergenerational patterns, difficult household conditions, migrant status, and the “working poor” experiencing mortgage arrears through the use of a “Family Champion” role to coordinate support providing tailored assistance and advocating for their needs while aiming to improve engagement with existing services and address the root causes of poverty.
4. Tipperary Children and Young People’s Service Committees and Tipperary Local Community and Development Committee – €85,000.
The pilot aims to enhance living conditions and reduce child poverty by improving energy efficiency and service integration. The pilot will focus on energy auditing and profiling to improve household energy efficiency and security and will assess how these interventions impact poverty indicators.
What Works, funded under Dormant Accounts, is an initiative designed by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. What Works aims to take a coordinated approach to enhance capacity, knowledge and quality, primarily in prevention and early intervention for children, young people and their families. Four key strands have been identified to embed and enhance prevention and early intervention in children and young people’s policy, service provision and practice:
• Data
• Evidence
• Professional development and capacity building
• Quality
What Works funding supports research and pilots with regard to prevention and early intervention. Further information can be found on the What Works website.
Ireland’s National Action Plan is a first step toward full implementation of the European Child Guarantee. The Child Guarantee is a European Commission initiative, which sets out to ensure that at the very least the most vulnerable children in the EU will have access to healthcare, childcare, education, housing and adequate nutrition. On foot of this, the Irish government prepared a national action plan as a first step to ensuring the child guarantee. The first interim report on Ireland’s progress under the European Child Guarantee was published on 10 June 2024. This can be found here.