Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The debate on the way children are treated in society has moved to centre stage in recent times, which is a welcome development. I believe we have become increasingly conscious of the fact that many children in our society were neglected, abused and forgotten. The evidence placed before us in the Ryan, Monageer, Ferns and Roscommon child care inquiry reports as well as the report of the child death independent review group underlines the fact that this is not a misplaced concern.

The stories from the various reports, which all had different although overlapping subject matters, shocked the nation and caused us to ask how it happened and how it was allowed to happen. No mother or father could help but think of their own child as we heard of the dreadful physical, sexual and emotional abuse so many young people suffered at the hands of clerical orders and others. None of us could help but be horrified as we heard how the State was made aware of threats to the health, welfare and lives of children but failed to do anything. It is truly heartbreaking to think of the lonely and tragic way in which a number of young people lost their lives while in care, as highlighted by the child death independent review group. It is clear that the way many children were treated in this country, and in particular the way in which the State safeguarded and protected the welfare of these children, was extremely deficient. There was clearly a need for action.

It is against that background and that failure that this legislation is being brought forward, and we will be pleased to give the Bill our support. It marks a significant step forward in terms of the protection of the health and welfare of children. The Child and Family Agency Bill will establish, for the first time, a dedicated support agency for children and families under the remit of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. The agency will bring together the HSE children and family services, the Family Support Agency, the National Educational Welfare Board and services relating to the psychological welfare of children as well as domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. The need for such an agency has been clear for some time.

This has come about on foot of considerable campaigning work from a wide variety of bodies and organisations. Most political parties have been supportive of it for some time, including Sinn Féin. There has long been concern about the lack of co-ordination between the various agencies responsible for children's welfare, and that this was leading to a deficit in information sharing and a lack of joined-up approaches to issues or cases that may have required a cross-departmental or cross-agency response. The need for a single authority with responsibility for this area was flagged as early as 1993 in the report on the Kilkenny incest case. Barnados put it well when it said:

Services for children and families in Ireland have long been divided across political departmental lines, particularly at the national level. On the ground, services have developed in an ad hoc manner, responding to local needs without a comprehensive national framework that helps to join the dots between the myriad services children and families engage with across Ireland. The division of services which often target many of the same children and families has led to fragmented service provision which fails to put the child at the centre of its work.

There was an obvious need to establish an agency of this kind to ensure there will be a very clear line of responsibility in respect of these matters. I, therefore, commend the Minister on establishing this new agency and on this legislation, both of which constitute a welcome and important step forward. The Minister has made progress on a number of important issues and I also commend her on that. There is a new Department and Ministry and the referendum on children's rights has been passed. All of these are extremely important developments. However, considerable shortfalls remain in this area and these must be addressed.

The most obvious and outstanding concern that is held across the youth care sector relates to resources. While this matter has been discussed on numerous occasions in the House, the conversation relating to it must be repeated until such time as it registers with the Government. The best structures and policies and the finest social and youth workers in the world will not have the impact envisaged if adequate staff and other resources are not put in place. If there is too great a workload on too few people, it will result in mistakes being made, oversights and children being failed. I recognise that some new social workers have been appointed. However, the numbers taken on are nowhere near sufficient. Ireland has relatively few child protection workers per head of population and in the context of the total number of children in care. Many of the reports compiled in respect of this matter have highlighted that levels of staffing are not adequate. A July 2013 review of the management of neglect cases in three areas of the country found that in Roscommon, the social work team was, at times, "dangerously understaffed". There were also very long delays for access to psychology services relating to child protection assessments, with 180 children obliged to wait one to two years to be assessed.

We can expect an increase in demand. The HSE's figures show that demand for its children and family services is increasing due to the increase in the number of children in the State, the economic climate and the consequent increase in reporting. When the Children First guidelines are placed on a statutory footing, we can expect further increases. Notwithstanding the increased staffing levels, both IMPACT and the Irish Association for Social Workers have expressed concerns about the level of vacancies, including those created by maternity leave, in this female-dominated profession.

It is clear that the recruitment embargo is still having a detrimental effect on staffing levels. I am greatly concerned with regard to how this will impact on the implementation of this legislation. As well as matters relating to staffing, the issue of finance also arises. The Children's Rights Alliance has argued that for the agency to be successful, it must start life without the deficit - approximately €20 million - currently carried by the HSE child and family services. The new agency will take over the responsibilities of the National Educational Welfare Board, which is extremely appropriate, particularly as it is germane to and tied in with wider issues of child protection and welfare. Ensuring a child obtains a good education and has access to the same educational opportunities as his or her peers is the best way to ensure he or she can live well, be happy and achieve his or her full potential. This is a key duty the new agency will be taking on. The National Educational Welfare Board has been criticised in recent times for its failure to take action and ensure children are attending school. Behaviour such as avoiding or missing school can often go hand in hand with other welfare difficulties. It is essential, therefore, that a joined-up approach is taken. We hope the new agency will have a different focus on welfare than the National Educational Welfare Board. It is vital that it should place a high priority on this matter.

One area which must be addressed in terms of children's welfare is that which relates to children in direct provision. I have just left a meeting of the Joint Committee on Health and Children at which the Ombudsman for Children, Ms Emily Logan, discussed detention in the context of St Patrick's Institution and other institutions. As far as I am concerned, however, direct provision is merely another form of detention. The Ombudsman, Ms Emily O'Reilly, recently warned that Ireland's treatment of asylum seekers "may well be in breach of not just our own Constitution but also international human rights conventions". She referred to a case with which her office dealt and which "showed the failure of State agencies to uphold their own obligations in relation to an asylum-seeking mother and her two young daughters". She said that what happened "effectively sundered that family unit". Under the current asylum process, an entire early childhood can be spent in direct provision accommodation. Almost a third of asylum seekers are children. They have no autonomy or liberty and in my opinion they could certainly be considered to be in detention. These places are not remotely suitable for children. Progress has been very slow on the legislation to reform the area. I hope the new agency and the Minister will take responsibility for safeguarding these children and ensuring their welfare - as they would in the case of other children - and take whatever steps are necessary to vindicate their rights.

I welcome this positive Bill and I commend the Minister on introducing it. However, I again emphasise that structures and policies are only able to deliver in light of the number of staff and level of resources available to them. I hope the Minister will take that fact on board.

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