Children still at risk, says ombudsman

JOINT OIREACHTAS COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND CHILDREN:THE OMBUDSMAN for Children has expressed concerned that hundreds of children continue to be at risk of abuse due to the lack of independent inspections of residential centres and hostels which house vulnerable young people.

At the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children yesterday, Emily Logan said the majority of almost 130 separated children seeking asylum stay in private hostels which are not subject to independent monitoring.

She said these children did not have access to an independent guardian, and many separated children did not have regular access to a social worker directly allocated to them.

In addition, she said there were hundreds of children with intellectual disabilities who were in residential centres which were not subject to any standards or inspections.

“I intend to publish individual cases that I believe will provide evidence for my concerns about a lack of appropriate inspections, monitoring and complaints mechanism for children with intellectual disabilities in care,” she said.

Ms Logan added that she had been in discussion with Government bodies for the past two years over introducing such inspections.

She also used her appearance before the Oireachtas committee yesterday to push for the introduction of a child death review mechanism.

Ms Logan said her office had issued an options paper for the Government and other agencies on how such a system could operate in order to ensure that issues surrounding the deaths of children – particularly those in care – were properly investigated.

Sinn Féin TD Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin, as well as other members of the committee, supported Ms Logan’s proposal.

“We are aware that around 20 children have died in the care of the State over a six-year period, including young people like Tracey Fay and David Foley,” Mr Ó Caoláin said, “yet we don’t even have sight of the recommendations of reports into their deaths.”

Also speaking at the committee, the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children called on the Government to urgently establish a national out-of-hours social work service for children and families in crisis.

Ashley Balbirnie, the society’s chief executive, said mental health problems and child abuse were not isolated in office hours.

“In fact, it is outside of these hours that the majority of child protection and welfare concerns arise,” he said. “Of the 400,000- plus calls we received last year, 78 per cent were outside of office hours.”

Child-protection issues which occur outside of office hours are dealt with by gardaí, without access to the expertise of trained social workers. While it welcomed the Government’s new out-of-hours emergency foster care system, it said this had serious shortcomings.