July, 2011.

Ms. Patricia Doran,

Clerk to the Committee,

Joint Committee on Health and Children,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Leinster House,
Kildare Street,
Dublin 2.

Dear Ms. Doran,

I refer to questions recently raised by members of the Joint Committee on Health and Children under the heading of ‘National Issues – Miscellaneous’.

I am attaching overleaf responses to those questions that relate to the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

Yours sincerely,

______

Evan Hackett

Private Secretary to Minister Frances Fitzgerald T.D.

Joint Committee on Health and Children

Responses from the Department of Children and Youth Affairs

  1. What progress has been made in relation to a stand alone Child Protection Agency? (Ciara Conway TD)

Response:

The Government is committed to fundamental reform and transformation of the delivery of our children and family services. A number of significant structural and legislative changes are key to effecting such reform. This includes the establishment of a new agency with dedicated responsibility for the delivery of child welfare and protection services, separate from the HSE and reporting directly to my Department through its Chief Executive.

Preliminary work on the establishment of the new agency has been undertaken and this will now be accelerated. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs recently had a very positive meeting with the National Director and senior management representatives from the HSE at which the establishment of the new agency was discussed. It is the Minister’s intention to develop an inclusive and collaborative approach in establishing the new agency. She intends to consult as widely as possible on its formation so as to ensure a smooth transition.

Among the key issues which are being progressed are the legislative and governance arrangements necessary to underpin the establishment and operation of the agency. The Department of Children and Youth Affairs is also working closely with the National Director for Children and Families Service within the HSE on associated matters, including the need to disaggregate the existing resource base for children and family services from the HSE in advance of the establishment of the agency. The Minister is very appreciative of the co-operation from the HSE to date in progressingthis significant change project, one which will, in her view, create the basis for delivering better outcomes for children and families nationally.

20.How can quality of care be better monitored for children in foster care? Can vetting systems be improved? (Mattie McGrath TD)

Response:

The HSE have dedicated monitoring officers who check that foster care services are provided in accordance with the National Standards for Foster Care and the 1995 Regulations. They report internally to HSE management.

According to recent figures from the HSE, 94% of children in care now have an allocated social worker. Under the Child Care Regulations (Foster Care and Relative Care) 1995, social workers have a responsibility to ensure the well-being of children in foster care. There are requirements for visiting the child and for ensuring the child's needs are well met, as set out in the Statutory Care Plan.

Under the Child Care Act, 1991 the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) inspects foster care services provided by the HSE and private companies. HIQA reports on its findings to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. HIQA hasto date inspected foster care in seven of the HSELHO areas. It found good standards in five areas, and poor standards in two. HIQA has been resourced to appoint a further five inspectors to allow it undertake foster care inspections across the country. That recruitment is currently in process.

EPIC, the association that represents children in care offers advocacy to young people in care. The Irish Foster Care Association offers advice, mediation, information and support to foster carers. Both organisations receive funding from the HSE to undertake these vital functions, with the overall aim of supporting good quality care for children.

Vetting for foster carers is extensive and thorough. Applicants who wish to become foster carersmust engage in a lengthy assessment process by social workers, prior to being recommended for approval by a foster care committee. They are Garda vetted, and must supply character and medical references.

In emergency situations, the Regulations allow for a shorter assessment which comprises Garda vetting and a shorter assessment by social workers. The complete assessment must be followed up within a number of weeks, albeit with the child on placement.

Inspections by HIQA and an internal audit by the HSE have identified that in two areas in Dublin North, the complete foster carer assessment had not been completed in a significant number of cases where children had been placed in emergency situations with relatives. The HSE internal audit findings for other areas indicate that a very small percentage of such cases have arisen. The HSE is rectifying this situation.