A Tusla child and family agency employee who was caught with thousands of child pornography images claimed to gardaí that he downloaded them in an effort to figure out paedophiles and sex offenders as part of his work.

Social workers believe a preventative programme should be introduced to lower the incidents of non-accidental head injuries in babies, with one of the country’s leading consultant paediatricians stating “prevention is better than cure”.

There should be more child protection public health nurses, according to the findings of a study which highlighted the vital role they play in spotting and dealing with neglect cases.