Ms Kate Duggan:

I thank the committee for the invitation to appear. I am joined by Clare Murphy, interim national director of services and integration and Gerard Brophy, chief social worker. We welcome the opportunity to discuss the Barnahus model today.

As outlined, Barnahus is the leading European model of a child-friendly, multidisciplinary response to integrate health, medical, child protection, therapeutic and policing services for children and adolescents where there is a concern of or disclosure of child sexual abuse. The key components of the Barnahus model are child protection services, forensic medical services, specialist interviewing and therapeutic services.

To give some context, in 2023 Tusla received a total of 91,924 referrals and 5,467, just 6%, of these related to sexual abuse. Referrals relating to sexual abuse are prioritised by Tusla social work teams for a response. Each incident of alleged abuse is a traumatic event for the individual child or young person and their family. When such reports are made to Tusla we respond sensitively, and with care and concern, in liaison with An Garda Síochána and the HSE medical forensic services, as appropriate. Tusla’s approach is one where the child’s safety is the first concern and support is provided based on each child’s individual needs.

A number of agencies may be involved in any response, including sexual assault treatment units, SATUs, child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, and Barnahus, among others.

Barnahus was first piloted in Ireland in the west in 2019 and is now established and operational in a child-friendly premises in Galway. Barnahus West offers an interagency response, incorporating Tusla, the HSE and An Garda Siochana, to child victims of sexual abuse and their families throughout the west, from Donegal to Limerick. Since 2020, Barnahus West has provided services to 446 children and their families. It has facilitated more than 350 interagency meetings, 234 specialist interviews and 296 forensic medical examinations. Recent initiatives within Barnahus West have led to an increase in the number of children and families accessing therapeutic interventions under the Barnahus model, such as the funding of two additional therapy posts, via Children at Risk in Ireland, CARI, to offer an additional and early therapeutic intervention. Barnahus West is also piloting a number of initiatives, such as a peer support group for the parents of children who have experienced online sexual abuse, and teaming with colleagues in Sweden to pilot a youth advocate role in Barnahuses in Sweden and Ireland. Entering its fourth year of operation, Barnahus West has achieved much, but challenges remain in respect of staffing, geography and the consistent implementation of interagency responses for children.

A second Barnahus is under way in the southern region, centred in Cork. The Barnahus South referral pathway opened in recent weeks. The Tusla staff complement is in place, including a manager, administrators, a senior social work practitioner, a social worker and a senior clinical psychologist. The social workers and senior clinical psychologist have undergone specialist training in the two agreed trauma-focused interventions for Barnahus. A framework for parental support, psychoeducation and crisis intervention for families when referred has been developed. The next phase will see the service expand throughout the south east to include a wider catchment area of Cork, Kerry, south Tipperary and Waterford, and the final phase will see it ultimately operating from a child-friendly "one house" co-located premises in Cork city, similar to Barnahus West.

A third Barnahus centre is planned for the east and will be centred in Dublin. Discussions with partners in CHI and the HSE are at an advanced stage, with an interim agreement on Barnahus East being prepared while we await the construction of a building similar to that planned for Cork and available in Galway.

Tusla is committed to working with all Departments and agencies to play our role in ensuring the full implementation of the Barnahus service across Ireland. As we progress the implementation of this child-friendly, integrated model, and better understand the immediate and ongoing therapeutic needs of children and young people who have been abused and their families, it is important the additional resources required for the full implementation of this service be allocated by the Government to enable the best possible outcomes for these children, young people and families.