Ms Nuala Ward:

The allocation was a serious issue for us as part of this investigation. As members know, we are aware social housing, group homes and all other different types of accommodation are incredibly valuable resources in Ireland. They must be administered fairly and transparently. That is really important.

When one looks at the different policies local authorities have, there are medical priorities. This area had a particular priority because of Travellers but, more importantly, it had a strong priority if there was severe overcrowding, which was causing a health and safety risk. We also had a number of children who had learning difficulties and such on the site. They ticked so many boxes in terms of priority and yet that was not reflected in the records we saw. There was not a recognition of compliance with policy, transparency and accountability with regard to how their applications were being administered.

That was a really serious issue considering the risks to the health and safety of the children on this site.