‘Extend inspectionsto private child units’

Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, says it supports a move to having private children’s residential care centres being independently inspected as suggested in a report highlighting major shortfalls in the process.

Children’s Ombudsman Niall Muldoon has recommended inspection of such centres be moved without delay to the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa). It already provides the inspection, registration and monitoring of State-run children’s residential centres.

May 2014 figures show around 100 private or voluntary children’s residential centres were catering for 341 children, at a cost of around €49m a year. These are ordinary houses where, usually, between two and six children are cared for by staff.