Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 17 July 2013

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children

Young People in Detention: Discussion with the Ombudsman for Children.

4:20 pm

Ms Emily Logan:

Industrial relations, HR and governance issues. Some of the governance is a little bit old-fashioned and dates back to the old reformatory schools. We have a board of management but its structure is quite old-fashioned. It is not for me to suggest but there may be better and more efficient ways of having a straight line to the Minister. The staff support the notion of a single campus director. I also support it. The three institutions need to be pulled together under the leadership of one individual.

I am not in a position to answer the question on the category of staff. It is more appropriate to the Irish Youth Justice Service, IYJS. We need a mix of staff ranging from care workers, more senior staff and more professionalised groups such as social workers. It is my experience internationally that places of detention with a mix of staff and disciplines deliver the best results for children.

Oberstown has been in existence for many years. I am sure that some of its staff have worked there for many years. It is a question of trying to ensure that they feel competent. In order to have a healthy culture, one needs staff to be healthy and able to provide such a culture.

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