Damning information found in review of ‘Mary’ foster care case

Woeful inter-agency co-operation, a string of communication failures, and poor record-keeping characterised the case of ‘Mary’, the intellectually disabled young woman left in a foster home for more than two years after sex abuse allegations were levelled against her foster father.

While other children were removed, Mary remained in the home in the Cork region until February 2016, even though the allegations were deemed “credible” by Tusla within months of being made in January 2014. The allegations related to claims that Mary’s foster father had sexually abused two children who were members of his extended family 15 years previously.

It took five weeks after the allegations were made before they were passed up the chain to senior Tusla management — a delay deemed “regrettable, but understandable” given “the demand on the service”.