Girl in care given a month to find a home

THE HSE has told a Waterford girl in foster care that she has one month to find a place to live, now that she has turned 18.

The girl’s mother said she had received a letter in advance of her 18th birthday in the past week telling her she would no longer be entitled to care.

The girl has been in care since last summer after she ran away from home. She has since begun using heroin and her mother maintains little has been done to help her.

“I was devastated for my daughter, when I saw the letter. It would mean she would be homeless. It was very insensitive. It simply said her place would be closed on the day of her 18th birthday.

“I contacted her social worker and the Garda and pleaded with them to give her more time. She has now been given a month and the offer of help to find a place to live.”

The case was first raised in this paper last year after the girl was reported missing. At the time, the teen’s mother said she felt her daughter was falling under the influence of an older man known to gardaí and who may be supplying her daughter with drugs.

“I feel the HSE has really let her down. She is now using heroin. The guards have been helpful, but it seems as though there is never anyone available in the HSE. They even started sending her post to her boyfriend’s house even though they know she should not be there.”

Once a teenager turns 18, the state does not have to maintain care services. Section 45 of the Child Care Act states the HSE “may” continue to provide aftercare.