The President of the Government of the Azores revealed today that companies from the private sector will open private homes and vacancies for home support, comprising about one hundred and fifty elderly, this and during the next year.

For Carlos César, this is one of the successes of the governmental policies in the social area – especially regarding the development of infrastructures for childhood support, the promotion of the strategy that merges the public preschool education network, the network of the solidarity system and the private network in the Azores.  

“New and various investment support systems, through the SIDER, are available for the private network. Thus, they represent a challenge for individuals to take over the management of responses to childhood, having in mind the increasingly demand for day nurseries, kindergartens and free time occupation centres in the Azores. We estimate a necessity of one thousand vacancies for day nurseries in the next five years,” added Carlos César.

The President of the Government spoke at the opening ceremony of the Shelter for Children and Youngsters, specially created for siblings, and the restructuring of the Mother Maria Clara Free Time Occupation Centre in Povoação. These are two services, as the President reminded, are part of the social network of infrastructures, which includes fifty six day nurseries, fifty six kindergartens, five family day nurseries with sixty four nannies, one hundred and twenty four free time occupation centres, nine itinerant educational centres, six street animation centres, six youth development and inclusion centres and forty five temporary shelters and homes.

“A specific programme which comprises several actions is being carried out in the regional network of solidarity, and it includes the expansion of the day nursery network in the Region, which will result in the construction of seven new facilities on São Miguel, Terceira, Pico, Faial and Graciosa, raising by 350 the number of vacancies in the regional Social Security network in the next three years,” mentioned Carlos César.

Furthermore, the network of free time occupation centres will be expanded, thus raising the number of operational infrastructures to 135 until the end of 2011.

The sheltering of children and youngsters at risk will also be improved in order to privilege, among children until the age of 4, their relationship with the biological families as well as the family reunification, through a shelter system for siblings, which creates specific homes for this purpose – such as the case of the service that was opened today – so that siblings may never be apart.

Finally, the President of the Government mentioned the intention of expanding the early screening programme for children with special educational needs to the protection system, announcing that forty nine children were screened and their respective intervention plans were created in a partnership with parents and teachers.

The construction of a Shelter for Children and Youngsters, specially created for siblings, and the restructuring of the Mother Maria Clara Free Time Occupation Centre were supported by the Government in 850 thousand Euros, requiring a annual funding of 224 thousand Euros for their operation.