Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for her question.

Foster care is the preferred form of alternative care for children in need of care and protection and who cannot live with their parents or guardians. Ireland is a world leader in this regard with over 92% of the 6,017 children in State care at the end of June being in foster care.This compares favourably from an international perspective. Indicative figures show that 61% of children in care in England reside in foster care, while the equivalent figures in Norway and Scotland are 89% and 88%, respectively. It must be noted that these figures relate to different time periods and thus are not directly comparable. It should also be noted that alternative care may be approached very differently in other jurisdictions, with different policy, practice and legislative contexts in operation.

There are a number of reasons foster care is not always an option. It may not be possible to find an appropriate foster care placement, a child could be at immediate risk or a child might have specific therapeutic needs that are best met in residential care. In these cases, a child may be placed, in his or her best interests and on the basis of social work assessments, in a residential setting. Approximately 7% of the 6,017 children in care in Ireland live in residential settings. In June 2019, this amounted to 400 young people. Individual residential centres care for small numbers of children, often no more than two or three.

Residential services are provided by Tusla directly and by private and voluntary bodies commissioned by Tusla. There are 26 voluntary residential children’s centres providing care for children in State care. Tusla uses a mix of its own services and voluntary and private providers to maximise the availability of services that are best suited to meet the needs of individual children and young people. Tusla uses other providers where no suitable placement is available in its own residential centres.

Tusla has advised that it is in the process of developing a three-year strategic plan for children’s residential services. I understand that this process will involve consultation with all relevant stakeholders. The outcome of this process will help shape the future of residential service provision.

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