Child aftercare law a ‘hollow guarantee’

The Government’s new national aftercare policy for vulnerable young people leaving state care does not have the resources to be implemented and the Child Care Act is a “hollow guarantee” for this group, child protection experts have warned.

Announced earlier this year by Frances Fitzgerald, the children’s minister, the HSE has committed to the implementation of the policy, which seeks to support young people leaving care.

However, Geoffrey Shannon, a child law expert at Focus Ireland and Epic (Empowering Young People in Care), maintains that, in reality, it is not much more than what the previous government offered, as aftercare is still not a legal right for young people in care who turn 18.

Mr Shannon said it is vital to ensure a legal right to aftercare to avoid future tragedies. Reports into the deaths of young people known to care services have shown what can happen when there is no support for such young people.

“I think the Child Care Act as it stands is a hollow guarantee without including this legal right,” Mr Shannon said. “There must be investment now to ensure there are sufficient resources in place to provide aftercare for the young people who require it.”

Jennifer Gargan, director of Epic, said that although the aftercare policy is welcome, it simply does not have the resources to be implemented.

“We welcome the minister’s commitment, it is a welcome step forward, but the resources to implement new aftercare policy are not there,” Ms Gargan said.

“The HSE has accepted that aftercare must be provided according to needs, and based on a needs assessment, but young people are not being assessed.”

There are approximately 45 dedicated aftercare workers in the HSE and the recruitment of 10 additional posts is underway. About 100 young people a year are leaving care, a figure that is set to rise as numbers in care continue to increase.

Ms Gargan said: “We are seeing a huge increase in young people in serious difficulties. Often they don’t know where to turn and as the HSE can opt out of this kind of care when the pressure is on resources, this is what’s cut.

“There were 100 people on a waiting list for the service in one area in Dublin last month and we have come across some serious cases where people are not being assessed. Aftercare is so important as it can prevent young people ending up in the psychiatric services, becoming homeless or even jail.”

Roughan MacNamara, a Focus Ireland advocacy manager, said the charity was “deeply disappointed” when the Government did not move to include amendments to Section 45 of the Child Care Amendment Bill 1991 in relation to the provision of a statutory right to aftercare.

He said: “Progress has been made in relation to the development of a national aftercare policy and the establishment of a steering group to monitor its implementation. However, this is not a substitute for legislative reform.”

A department spokesperson said Ms Fitzgerald is aware of the challenges facing the aftercare service and the need for consistency across all areas.

“The national policy is being rolled out under the watch of the HSE’s Aftercare Implementation Group, which includes representation from the HSE, mental health, family service and disability service, as well as representation from the voluntary sector,” the spokesperson said.