Frances Fitzgerald (Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 2:

In page 6, before section 3, but in Part 2, to insert the following new section:

"3.—The Minister shall within three months of the commencement of this Act, publish a report on the provision of secure care under this Act which shall include consideration of how such provision compares with best practice internationally.".

This amendment is a request to the Minister of State that within three months of the commencement of the Act, he will publish a report on the provision of secure care under this Act, which should include a consideration of how such provision compares with best practice internationally. This amendment relates to the requirement to have outcome-focused research on the experiences of children in secure units and high support care. The actual experience of children must be examined and the gaps within the system will be identified by conducting such research. This Bill provides an opportunity to review the provision of secure care as it operates at present. Obviously, being in secure care often constitutes an extreme situation for children and it is important to analyse critically their experiences within such units, to try to consider them as objectively as possible and to learn from them and gather the research therefrom. It is clear that the units around the world which operate most effectively and which have the most success employ quality assessments. I have worked with some units of this kind in England and what is needed from the outset is a quality assessment that leads to a proper treatment plan for the individual, which is regularly reviewed, monitored and evaluated as one goes along.

Clearly, as I noted previously, a child will only be in this situation when he or she is at extreme risk and hopefully, when the child no longer needs such a level of care, he or she will be taken away from such a secure centre. Best practice indicates that one needs high quality step-down facilities to ensure that such a child can move on and get the best possible help. All the research I know of on children who are in care states that doing high quality work with the family while the child is in care can be to the child's advantage in many cases. Therefore, family work would form an essential part of any programme of work with a child who is in a secure unit, wherever possible. One thereby acknowledges the significance of the family for the child and how, even if the child is in secure care, the family's dynamics continue to be part of that child's life and to affect his or her development, future and care.

In a point that is pertinent throughout the Bill, a child's presence in a secure unit is no reason to ignore the voice of the child but is quite the opposite. One must listen clearly to the child or young person's comments on the experience he or she is having in the secure unit. It is essential to build into the Bill this concept as strongly as possible in order that the child's rights are respected and that he or she is consulted. Even though a child may be in a secure unit, one can and should have extremely high standards. It should be a positive therapeutic experience and treatment for the child. If all these requirements are to be met, by accepting this amendment the Minister of State has an opportunity to review what has been learned from the secure units thus far, to continue this process of learning about the experience of the child and to evaluate it critically. I am interested to learn whether the Minister of State proposes to accept this amendment and will await his response before making further comment.