Functions and Services Provided to the Public

The Department of Children and Youth Affairs' mission is to lead the effort to improve the outcomes for children and young people in Ireland. The department's current three-year Statement of Strategy sets out an ambitious range of actions to be achieved.

Central to this is the implementation of Better Outcomes Brighter Futures, which requires close collaboration with all stakeholders, effective co-ordination across government departments and clear leadership from this department.

The department engages with the agencies under its aegis, detailed in its Corporate Governance Framework, (PDF, from page 46) and with international institutions as part of its remit.

The department does not directly provide services, but has a range of policy and funding responsibilities across a wide spectrum of service provision, including:

• Childcare
• Children in Care
• Child and Youth Participation
• Child Welfare and Protection
• Adoption
• Youth Justice
• Youth Affairs
• Play and Recreation
• Area Based Childhood Programme
• Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes)
• Children and Young People’s Services Committees (CYPSC)
• Research