At least 33 foster care abuse claims ‘have substance’

At least 33 allegations of abuse by foster carers to children in their care were found to have substance by the Child and Family Agency over a 15-month period.

Figures provided by Tusla show 24 allegations of abuse made against foster carers around the country last year were “found to have substance”, while in the first quarter of this year there were another nine allegations — including three in the Cork area alone.

The figures show while none of the allegations were of a sexual nature, 11 across the 15-month period involved physical abuse.