Substantial variance in number of care orders

Wide variations in the number of child care orders made by district court judges have emerged in a groundbreaking study published yesterday.

The Court Service figures reveal that in some towns of roughly the same size, hundreds of orders are granted, while in others they are in single figures.

Records reveal that 225 orders were granted in Letterkenny, compared to eight in Killarney, one in Mullingar, 10 in Athlone, 23 in Carlow, and 60 in Cavan.