Ms Clodagh Carroll:

From the perspective of Barnardos, the Deputy touched on a very important topic. It is something that can have a significant impact on children, especially children who have experienced trauma. I refer to a sudden change without information, without choice and without control. The impact of trauma we see children experiencing is such that they are constantly scanning their environment for threats, constantly uncertain as to what is going to happen next and constantly in a state of high arousal, which has an impact on their physical well-being, their behaviour, their interaction with peers and their relationships with others. They will also bounce off of their parents' high arousal when they also are not aware of what is happening next.

I can refer to a situation in Dublin. We were reaching out to a group that was housed in one of our regions. We were trying to provide our Breath Body Mind programme. We had developed this programme but up to 150 people were then moved quite suddenly within a day or two. We see the impact of that. Children who have experienced trauma need safety, security, certainty and stability. They need to know what is happening next and they need to be made aware of it before it happens. When you are in a traumatic situation, control and choice are very important to you. They help you to overcome the sense of powerlessness that comes with trauma. From the point of view of Barnardos, early information, certainty, security, safety, knowing what is going to happen next and being made aware at the first point of contact what is happening today and what is likely to happen next week and in a few weeks is an absolutely necessity for these children. Sudden changes, such as being taken out of a school before being taken to another centre and going to another school, retraumatise and retrigger children.