"No room for complacency" in church abuse safeguards - Fitzgerald

Frances Fitzgerald, TD, Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, today responded to the publication of a further tranche of reviews conducted by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church (NBSCCC) into safeguarding practices at both diocesan and Religious Congregation level.

8% Reduction in Clondalkin Jobless Figures Shows Government's Plans are Working

Local TD Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Children & Youth Affairs has today welcomed the 8% annual reduction in the live register figures for Clondalkin as a “clear and encouraging sign that the Irish economy is moving in the right direction”.

Figures published by the CSO today show that the live register total for the Clondlakin local office area, which encompasses the bulk of Dublin Mid West, showed a fall from 9.033 in October 2012 to 8,345 in October 2013.

Minister Fitzgerald stated: "This figure is still too high, but I welcome the fact that we are now going in the right direction"

Minister Fitzgerald Welcomes Launch of Child Rescue App

Minister for Children & Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald has welcomed the launch today of a new app for Child Rescue Ireland (CRI), which will allow the public to assist Gardai in cases of missing children.

Minister Fitzgerald said: “ The CRI app will be available to download for free on most smartphone platforms from tomorrow, and should prove a boon to Gardai as it provides them with a further method of enlisting the public’s assistance when investigating child abduction cases.

Fitzgerald welcomes expansion of Clondalkin Microsoft facility

Local TD Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Children & Youth Affairs, has today (3 December) welcomed the decision by Microsoft to expand their Clondalkin data centre, creating 20 new jobs at the facility and up to 380 construction jobs.

Minister Fitzgerald said: “the news of this €170m expansion is excellent news for the area, and comes hot on the heels of the news that Digital Realty is also building a mega data centre in Clondalkin. With this expansion, Microsoft’s total investment in this facility will be almost €600 million – a clear vote of confidence in the Irish economy as a global hub for this growing sector, and a further vote of confidence in Clondalkin as a key pillar in Microsoft Ireland’s architecture.

Minister Fitzgerald welcomes new Mid-West Dublin school building projects

New builds to begin in Griffeen, Newcastle and Saggart in 2014.

Local TD Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Children & Youth Affairs, has today (29 November) “warmly welcomed the announcement of 3 vital new school projects scheduled for 2014 construction in the Dublin Mid-West area”.
 

3rd Eastern Partnership Summit

I am currently in Vilnius, Lithuania for the Eastern Partnership Summit (pictured here with Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaite).

With 34 countries represented, myself and Minister of State for European Affairs Paschal Donohoe TD are the Irish delegation at the Vilnius Summit.

The Joint Declaration arising from the Summit is available here: goo.gl/JJolmt 

It is a clear sign of hope that it is primarily young people - including those from from Armenia and Ukraine - who will benefit from this Partnership Summit.

Fitzgerald welcomes €100 million data centre investment for West Dublin

Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Children & Youth Affairs and Local TD for Dublin Mid West has today  welcomed the start of construction works for a new €100 million data centre at Profile Park, stating that “this project is a timely boost for construction in the area and highlights the Government’s job creation strategy in this growing sector”.

“My colleague Richard Bruton TD, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, broke the ground on Digital Realty’s 10 acre data centre site at Profile Park today. This is a leading international company which in recent weeks opened data centres in Hong Kong and Melbourne. The decision to build a new facility in West Dublin is a clear vote of confidence in Ireland’s recovery and potential as a global hub for data centres.

Minister Fitzgerald announces major 1m investment for Clondalkin children

Frances Fitzgerald TD, Minister for Children & Youth Affairs, has today announced that the Clondalkin Blue Skies Initiative has been selected as one of 13 projects to be funded through the Governments new ABC (Area-Based Childhood) Programme.

€ 998,500 is to be provided to the Clondalkin initiative over the years 2013-2016, co-funded by Minister Fitzgeralds Department and Atlantic Philanthropies.

Minister hails “extraordinary” Clondalkin film festival to promote mental health

Local T.D. Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Children & Youth Affairs, said she was “proud and privileged” to launch the “extraordinary” second annual youth-led CAST Film Festival on Mental Health in the Green Isle hotel, Clondalkin this week.

Speaking after the event, the Minister said: “tonight’s ceremony showcased 15 short films - shortlisted from 40 entrants - made by students from across Ireland highlighting issues around mental health.

Good training for parents can benefit ADHD children: Fitzgerald

The findings of a new study show that parents with ADHD kids can significantly improve the wellbeing of their children through specialised training programmes, local T.D. and Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald said this week.

Speaking at the launch of the study – which assesses the effectiveness of a parent and child training programme known as Incredible Years – Minister Fitzgerald said that “the evidence shows that learning new techniques in high quality parenting can have any number of positive outcomes for children with ADHD, such as a lower cost of intervention and reduced need for medication.

Morning Edition Interview

On November 20th, I made an appearance on RTE’s Morning Edition show hosted by Keelin Shanley, where I answered questions on my work building Ireland’s first ever Government agency dedicated to children and families, as well as a variety of other topics.

To see a video of the show, please go to: http://www.rte.ie/player/ie/show/10224788/

 

Coffee Mornings to raise breast cancer awareness a great success

Local T.D. and Minister for Children & Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald, in cooperation with the Marie Keating Foundation, recently hosted two Feel Good Coffee Mornings, encouraging women to “take as many steps as possible to be fully breast aware”.

The Coffee Mornings, hosted in Áras Chronáin Clondalkin on 1st November and Kenny's of Lucan on 11th November, featured a range of speakers and activities, all aimed at informing women about the options available to them in maintaining good breast health.

Minister Fitzgerald hailed the “vital impact of organisations like the Marie Keating Foundation in empowering women to make the right choices regarding breast cancer awareness.

Budget “Know Where You Stand” – available in my office

Local T.D. Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, has circulated a “Know Where You Stand” leaflet, which outlines your rights and entitlements in Budget 2014, to homes in the Dublin Mid-West constituency.

"I hope you find this useful, and if you have any questions about the details, or require extra copies for family members or friends, please contact my constituency office," Minister Fitzgerald said.

National reality check needed on cannabis risks: Minister Fitzgerald

When it comes to the very real risks associated with cannabis abuse, it’s high time we dispense with the myths and focus on the facts, Minister for Children and local T.D. Frances Fitzgerald told a busy conference in Clondalkin this week.

Speaking at the “Cannabis Conference” organised by Clondalkin Drugs Task Force, Minister emphasised that “cannabis is often overlooked as a social problem because a number of unhelpful myths are perpetuated about its effects.

St Mary’s GFC & Pieta House Mind Ur Buddy campaign

St Mary's GFC Saggart in partnership with Pieta House are involved in the Mind Ur Buddy campaign. This campaign focuses on suicide and self harm awareness, for all adults and young people who are involved in the club. Three Club Members who have been specifically trained by Pieta House therapists recently held a brief information launch.

Exchange House Education Awards

Local T.D. and Minister for Children & Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald recently presented the Exchange House National Educational Achievement Awards, which celebrates Travellers from the 32 counties of Ireland who have recently completed the Junior Certificate, Leaving Certificate, GCSE, A Level examinations or Third Level Courses, and recognises the hard work and commitment shown by the recipients in reaching their goals.

Launch of national childhood obesity campaign

Local T.D. and Minister for Children & Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald recently launched with Health Minister James Reilly the Safefood childhood obesity campaign.

This very useful campaign encourages parents to make practical changes to everyday lifestyle habits such as portion sizes, drinks and screen time, in order to make a big difference to the health and wellbeing of our children and combat Ireland’s unfortunately high levels of childhood overweight and obesity.

Minister Fitzgerald hails “amazing” Ciarán Carr Foundation fundraiser

Local TD and Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Frances Fitzgerald, supported the Ciarán Carr Foundation’s  10 km Fun Run/Walk on Saturday 19th October, and praised the “amazing effort of everyone who made the event a wonderful success”.

October Opening of Jigsaw important for youth mental health

Following many years work on the issue, local T.D. and Minister for Children & Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald, said she "was immensely proud to officially launch the new Youth Mental Health centre Jigsaw Clondalkin," based beside St Peter’s Apostle Church in Neilstown in early October.

Schools to Adopt Stronger Anti- Bullying Proceedures

Delete CyberBullying Event in Lucan

Local TD and Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Frances Fitzgerald, has this week welcomed the announcement of new anti-bullying procedures for schools. Her colleague, Minister for Education and Skills Ruairí Quinn, has introduced provisions for anti-bullying policies across all 4,000 primary and secondary schools as well as education and prevention strategies for cyber-bullying to be implemented.

“Since taking office as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, my Department has published reports highlighting the devastating effects bullying has on young people. According to my research, nearly a quarter of 9- 17 year olds report being bullied. We have also had a few tragic cases of cyber-bullying that have received national attention. Given that the last anti-bullying guidelines were issued to schools in 1993, there was a real need to address bullying with more effective and up to date procedures.

 

“Last year I worked with my colleague, Minister Ruairí Quinn, on the ‘Action Plan on Bullying’ which identified the trends and steps needed to halt bullying and abusive behaviour amongst the school community. I am also glad that prevention is to be included in all anti-bullying procedures implemented by schools. It is important that schools have a positive culture around discussing bullying so students feel that they can reach out to teachers if they are in difficulty,” said Fitzgerald.