Children in care centre felt they ‘had lost the ability to make a cup of tea’

An inspection of the Ballydowd Special Care Centre has found children there now find it “normal” that a metal detector is used during body searches, while other children said they felt they had “lost the ability to make a cup of tea”.

The observations are contained in a monitoring inspection report carried out by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) on Ballydowd, which is one of three special care centres in the country.

At the time of the inspection, conducted over three days last autumn, there were 10 children living there aged between 13 and 17 years, all detained under a High Court detention order — on the basis that they pose a serious risk to themselves or others.

The report stressed that it found many examples of good and improving practice and management, although of the seven standards assessed, the centre met just one (education) and required improvement in six.

Despite the challenging nature of the behaviour sometimes displayed by the residents, the report found “some of security measures had the potential to adversely impact on the child’s rights and required review”.

While the number of restrictive practices — such as physical interventions and single separation — had fallen since the last Hiqa inspection, some restrictive practices lasted for long periods of time.

There were 40 incidents of physical interventions (including holding) involving 11 of 23 children, with one child the subject on nine occasions. While 28 physical interventions lasted five minutes or less, eight lasted 10 minutes or less and just four more than 10 minutes, although one intervention lasted for 70 minutes.

There were 45 incidents of single separation involving 12 of 23 children and there were 166 structured ‘time away’ episodes involving 21 of 23 children.

According to the report: “Records of single separation did not always clearly show risk assessments relating to the conditions of the separation, such as the need to make the en suite bathroom inaccessible.”

A risk management policy and risk register was in development but inspectors found the practice of using a metal detector during body searches each time children came back from unsupervised family access or mobilities “had become routine”, with repeated exposure resulting in children “becoming desensitised to the practice” so that they considered it “to be normal”.

Gardaí were called to the centre 10 times over the year in relation to seven children, with seven of these occasions related to behaviour incidents pertaining to two children in particular. The report also highlighted how one child at risk of self-harm acquired a pair of scissors and another child, having returned from a court hearing, went to a woodwork class and used a tool to destroy property and cause significant disruption.

According to the report: “Some children told inspectors they felt they had lost the ability to make a cup of tea or manage keys. Only one of the five children over 16 years had a leaving care plan and an aftercare worker.”