Minister O’Gorman welcomes HIQA inspection reports of four Tusla services

Minister for Children, Disability, Equality and Integration Roderic O’Gorman welcomed inspection reports of four Tusla services, published today, where children commented positively on their experiences of social work services. The Tusla services were the foster care service in Mayo, and three Child Protection and Welfare Services in Donegal, Galway/Roscommon and Dublin South East/Wicklow.

Inspectors highlighted children’s own experiences who showed a high degree of satisfaction with social workers and foster carers who keep them safe.

Minister O’Gorman said:

"I am very pleased to see how well the Tusla Mayo foster care service fared, where social workers meet all standards inspected. I particularly welcome hearing directly from children in the reports – this is really putting children at the centre of the service. Fifty three children responded to survey questions and all feedback demonstrated the importance of listening and involving children in decisions about them."

One child’s comment in the report summed up the responses of many:

“I like that my current foster family feels like home and my opinions that I give are always backed up by them, bad or good. Each person in the house makes me feel welcome. They always influence me to do my best. I can be myself here, I don't need to act anymore. I don't feel like I'm by myself anymore. I like that they trust me and that I kinda trust them, and that's not easy for me. I feel three things are important in a house and they give them to me; love, trust and safety. My foster family shows me these every single day without a shadow of a doubt”

HIQA’s reports on the three child protection services showed that overall they were doing well, with areas for improvement in making sure local services were consistent with national standards. Children who met inspectors said that ‘everything had changed since I met my social worker’ and gave suggestions as to how social workers could listen better. Parents in one area said that social workers communicated well with them. The Minister noted the challenges for social workers working in this area, as parents whose children are referred to Tusla are usually experience serious personal problems and may not wish to engage with child protection services however he said that:

"it is essential that all parents and children are treated respectfully and offered services to meet their needs."

HIQA identified the need for a sufficient number of well supported social workers to undertake this important function and said his Department was engaged with Tusla and other stakeholders on this matter.

These inspections were completed before the outbreak of Covid-19 and the reports are being released by HIQA in a series of delayed publications.

ENDS

Notes to the Editor:

The publication of all reports was postponed due to Covid-19 emergency measures.

Mayo foster care service:

Inspected by HIQA on 24 – 27 February 2020;
HIQA inspected against national standards under the theme ‘Safe and Effective Services';
Every child had an allocated social worker, social work visits were high quality and there were measures in place to safeguard children from all forms of abuse;
The majority of children liked their social worker and made positive about their foster families. One child said, “They always influence me to do my best. I can be myself here, I don't need to act anymore.”

Galway/Roscommon child protection and welfare service:

Inspected by HIQA on 28 – 31 January 2020;
HIQA inspected against national standards under two dimensions: ‘Capacity and Capability of the service’ and ‘Quality and Safety of the service’;
Assessments were comprehensive and of good quality, and cases were closed appropriately. Professional registration was not evident on all social work personnel files;
Children were very positive about the service they received. One child said, “Everything has changed since I have my social worker.”;
Although in the process of being filled, the service had three vacancies which impacted upon the timeliness of the service received. Social workers told inspectors that there was a need for more administrative staff.

Dublin South East/Wicklow child protection and welfare service:

Inspected by HIQA on 10 – 13 February 2020;
HIQA inspected against national standards under two dimensions: ‘Capacity and Capability of the Service’ and ‘Quality and Safety of the Service’;
The service area had experienced and committed managers, and children and families were receiving a more timely service. Some staff files did not contain the required recruitment documentation;
Children spoke positively about their social workers and social care workers. One child described their social care worker as life changing;
At the time of the inspection, the service area was adequately resourced to ensure the efficient management of referrals.

Donegal child protection and welfare service:

Inspected by HIQA on 10 – 12 March 2020;
HIQA inspected against national standards under two dimensions: ‘Capacity and Capability of the Service’ and ‘Quality and Safety of the Service’;
The report highlighted good areas of practice including communication with children and quality of assessments and safety plans. There were delays in the completion of preliminary enquiries and in the commencement of initial assessments. Notifications to An Garda Síochána were not always timely;
Parents said that social workers communicated well. Children made suggestions at how social workers could listen better;
Inspectors noted a specific deficit in permanent staff which resulted in delays and not always timely actions.