Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 26 June 2025

Committee on Children and Equality

Engagement with Office of the Ombudsman for Children

2:00 am

Photo of Ruairí Ó MurchúRuairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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There is a fair amount of agreement about the necessity to provide interventions and high support and the earlier that is done then the better the outcome. Obviously there is a failing because we are talking about special care and high support being insufficiently resourced with the right sort of supports that are needed for acute circumstances. That is a case of highlighting the issue and ensure that conversation happens because here we keep talking about early interventions, holistic and whole-of-government approaches, yet we do not deliver.

The provision of in-school counselling makes complete sense. Again, it is located where the need is. We have seen it in respect of disabilities. It is a promise rather than delivery from the point of view of in-school therapies. Again, if we put that into schools might mean we have fewer suspensions and whatever.

I wish to raise an issue that has been mentioned by a number of members here. Of the issues that are caused by the difficulties of the engagement, whether we are talking about mental health services, particularly CAMHS, and addiction services, another term we love using is "no wrong door" and having a single point of access. Again, we are dealing with promises about that but we do have to see it absolutely fulfilled because otherwise we just have failure.