Written answers
Thursday, 16 May 2019
Department of Children and Youth Affairs
Care Orders
Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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162. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 94 of 4 April 2019, the reason there are substantial variations in the amount of children being placed in foster care across different districts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21187/19]
Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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The number of Court Orders issued in relation to children is a matter for the Court Service and I understand that the Deputy is being supplied with information on the number of Child Care Orders as recorded by the Court Office.
I can advise the Deputy that a child received into care by Tusla as a result of a legal court order or through voluntary parental consent is placed in foster care or residential care.
Foster care is the main form of alternative care for children in need of care and protection, and is the preferred option for children who cannot live with their parents or guardians. Of the children in care, 92% are in foster care, nationally. Children, depending on their individual need and based on their Care Plan, may be placed in foster care either with relatives or with general foster carers.
The Table below lays out the number of children in foster care in each Tusla area, the total number of children in care in that area and the percentage in foster care. The data covers the latest period for which data is available, February 2019.
| Area | Total number of children in care February 2019 | Number of children in foster care February 2019 | % of children in care, who are in foster care February 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dublin South Central | 359 | 328 | 91% |
| Dublin South East / Wicklow | 272 | 245 | 90% |
| Dublin South West / Kildare / West Wicklow | 403 | 360 | 89% |
| The Midlands | 384 | 363 | 95% |
| Dublin City North | 503 | 465 | 92% |
| Dublin North | 328 | 294 | 90% |
| Louth / Meath | 410 | 388 | 95% |
| Cavan / Monaghan | 158 | 157 | 99% |
| Cork | 773 | 729 | 94% |
| Kerry | 165 | 150 | 91% |
| Carlow / Kilkenny / South Tipperary | 337 | 317 | 94% |
| Waterford / Wexford | 434 | 390 | 90% |
| The Midwest | 581 | 533 | 92% |
| Galway / Roscommon | 393 | 381 | 97% |
| Mayo | 123 | 120 | 98% |
| Donegal | 211 | 201 | 95% |
| Sligo / Leitrim / West Cavan | 108 | 103 | 95% |
| Separated Children Seeking Asylum | 55 | 9 | 16% |
| National Total | 5,997 | 5,533 | 92% |
The Deputy will note that all Tusla areas, except Dublin South Central Kildare West Wicklow (89%), have between 90-99% of children in care placed in foster care. Separated Children Seeking Asylum are dealt with by a specialist team and include children presenting to authorities at ports and those under the IRPP programme (including Calais) who arrived on a planned basis. The majority of these children are aged 16 and 17 on arrival and wish to remain with their peers, and receive intensive specialist support in dedicated small residential (up to 6 children) centres.
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