Report urges suitable supports for vulnerable parents

Vulnerable parents must be provided with "appropriate supports" to break the "vicious cycle" of their children being taken into care, the Chief Justice, Susan Denham, has said.

Speaking at the publication of the final report from the Child Care Law Reporting Project, Denham noted that more than half the cases involved vulnerable and marginalised parents.

Led by Dr Carol Coulter, the report presents data from 1,272 childcare proceedings that were before the courts between December 2012 and July 2015.

“The report highlights a lack of availability of suitable and appropriate services for vulnerable parents,” said Denham. “It sends the clear message that parents with mental health problems, intellectual disabilities, parents from minority ethnic groups or those who have been in care themselves or have addiction issues, and those who struggle with a child with mental difficulties, absolutely need suitable and integrated supports.”

Mental health

The recommendation that the Child and

Family Agency

(CFA) and the HSE work together to identify the support needs of parents with mental health difficulties was “one of the most important” that “needs to be acted on now if we are to advance in the area of childcare.”

Fred McBride, chief operations officer with the CFA, welcomed the report, saying it brought “an overall perspective on the interaction of childcare law and social work and the impact on children and families . . . It is extremely important that we work with other agencies in order to provide co-ordinated support to families experiencing difficulties such as those highlighted in the report”.

Denham said the voice of the child in proceedings must be heard.

This was “really one of the most important things we are going to have to develop” and would require co-operation between all those involved in childcare proceedings.

Family court

“The process is enabling us, who were all children once, to remember how to listen to the voice of the child. For, as it was said in the

Harry Potter

series, a child’s voice, however honest and true, is meaningless, to those who have forgotten to listen.”

She reiterated the call in the report for a dedicated family court.

“[The report] observes, in Dublin and elsewhere, overcrowded courts undermining the dignity of parties, causing additional stress, militating against calm and focused discussion among parties. The establishment of dedicated family courts to hear both public and private law is a matter of urgency.”

Dr Coulter said the reporting team had been struck by “just how vulnerable some of the parents are”.

“It’s really important we realise when we have inadequate service for parents with a disability. It impacts on their families and it impacts on their children.”