Kathleen Funchion urges review to expand AIM supports

This question is in relation to the AIM programme. Just ask yourself, Minister, to review and possibly expand the AIM programme, given the vital role they play in the early years sector, and if you can make a statement on the matter. Thanks. Thank you, Deputy. Since 2016, my department has funded the Access and Inclusion Model, AIM, to ensure that children with disabilities can access the early learning and early childhood care and education. ECE programme. Its goal is to empower preschool providers to deliver an inclusive preschool experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the ECE programme and reap the benefits of high quality early learning and care. AIM offers tailored, practical supports. Some are universal, some are targeted, and they are based on need and they do not require a formal diagnosis of disability. Close to 20,000 children with a disability have benefited from targeted supports under AIM since its introduction. One of the commitments in First Five, the whole-of-government strategy for babies, young children and their families, was to undertake an evaluation of AIM, and subject to the evaluation findings and other relevant developments, to consider enhancements to or extensions of AIM, for example, for example, to all early learning and care services, all school-age childcare services, and to children with additional needs other than a disability. The AIM evaluation commenced in 2021, and it is now close to completion, and the final report is due to be published in quarter three of this year. And the findings from that evaluation will inform further development of AIM, which is a commitment in First Five. But in the meantime, I have recently allocated additional funding to AIM to support children with disabilities, access the ECE programme, and specifically from September of this year, an additional capitation provided to AIM to enable a lower adult-child ratio is going to increase by 14% from September. So the AIM capitation was €210 per week, it is now going to raise to €240 per week, and this will benefit approximately 3,500 ECE services across the country. Thanks, Minister. I know that there was a recent increase, and that is welcome. I suppose, I am wondering, is there any plans or possibility that AIM could be expanded outside of ECE for the younger cohort? We actually, this is coming on the back of a visit we did to a family resource centre that I believe you were actually at as well, it is in Limerick, the King's Island facility, and I know that they have sort of a high level of demand for the AIM programme, and sometimes I think what happens with parents is, if you can get AIM with ECE, and yet you are in maybe potentially full day care, that people do not really understand then, if you are saying to one child, well look, you can't actually maybe access the full day, it is not that they are saying they can't, I think you know the point I am trying to make, that it is very difficult for them if they do not have that AIM support, and given that I suppose we do not have a huge amount of maybe even ASD preschools throughout the country is expanding AIM outside of just ECC, is that a possibility of looking at supporting those children? Thanks. Thanks, Deputy. Well, nothing is off the table in terms of a broadening of AIM. I know how good a programme it is, I have spoken to parents who have experienced the value for their child, I have spoken to services, I have seen they have been able to do so much more for children, so my starting point is I want to expand access to AIM. You know I like to do things after the research is completed, so I can understand what is the current situation, I have acted on the many reports that we have done in childcare so far, and I hope to be able to act on the AIM evaluation that will be coming in in quarter three and be able to expand it. It probably will be an incremental expansion because there are different, do you go younger, as you say, the zero to three group, do you go to school age childcare, do you give it to the existing group with outside the HA hours, and obviously there are financial considerations on all of that, but it is such a good investment, and like you I was in Kings Island, I saw the amazing work the team do there. As you know we are also working on the DESH type model as well, a kind of a broader support for socially disadvantaged young people, and probably the merger of the two there, the crossover of the two, will hopefully provide more support for children who need it the most. Thanks Minister, that is welcome in relation to like a review of AIM, because I do think, and it is a more recent programme as well, I think that we have seen where there really is the benefits are actually incredible, I do, I know that there is, there is lots of elements to it, and I suppose it is because you see the benefits for children, that there is such a demand for it, because if it can be expanded out, certainly I think to children in potentially full daycare, but I know that there is kind of lots of sections to that, but I think that is good, and the research that you are doing, you are hoping to have that maybe between September and December of this year, is there completed, or, and is there consultation with the early learning group, that you have in the inter-departmental group as well, just because I think that is important, because there is facilities like the one in Limerick for example, that have so much knowledge on it, I think their input and others' input would be really invaluable as well. Thanks very much, Deb, I can maybe get back to you with a little more detail in terms of the process, as I say, it started in 2021, so it has been quite a lengthy and detailed process, I would imagine it has been engaged with providers, who have undertaken this work. I think the real strength of AIM is its flexibility, as we know the DASH model used in primary or secondary school, is kind of all or nothing, you get DASH status or you don't, whereas AIM has this graduated level of support, one to seven, recognising that a situation in different services, and indeed different children, may be different and it should be tailored as such, and I think our approach to supporting disadvantage, which again we are looking to advance, will probably be like that again, make it a little bit more tailored to the needs of a particular service, recognising that you can have a service in what is maybe regarded as an affluent area, but maybe many of the children, or even some of the children because of renting, because of the different social circumstances of people, some children there may need additional supports. Thank you, Deb. Thank you, Deb. Thank you, Deb. You