Mr. Mark Toland:

We went to the Rowan Centre in Northern Ireland, which is attached to a hospital. There are security issues in the North around police officers being located full-time in that centre and this is one of the reasons it does not happen. The level of interaction is very different. We found that the services appear to work very well because different organisations come together at the centre. At one point I believe that Tusla and An Garda Síochána were looking at whether they could actually use the centre for victims of crime, especially those from Donegal or northern counties. That has not been agreed but it is an option that would perhaps save some families and victims having to travel to other centres.