Principals: Neglect not limited to less well-off

CHILD neglect is no longer affecting just pupils from poorer backgrounds and needs to be the subject of mandatory reporting laws along with other forms of abuse, principals have warned.

The Irish Primary Principals’ Network (IPPN) is seeking the introduction of laws to make reporting the suspicion of child abuse obligatory, but insists it must be followed by mandatory action from health authorities.

Almost nine-in-10 of 900 members surveyed ahead of the organisation’s conference, which began in Killarney yesterday, want laws introduced to make reporting mandatory to protect children at risk. The types of abuse under which schools are expected to make reports to health authorities are neglect, physical, sexual or psychological abuse.