New act sets up commissioner for foster carers to report possible wrongdoing

Tusla’s figures show there are 4,000 foster carers and 5,171 children in the care of the State. File picture

Foster carers will now be able to send any concerns of possible wrongdoing to a Protected Disclosures Commissioner.

Up until now, foster carers had no whistleblower avenue within Tusla, because they are not regarded as employees. However, following a major overhaul of the Protected Disclosures Act, which came into force on January 1, foster carers can lodge concerns directly with the Protected Disclosures Commissioner.

The new act includes people who had nowhere to make a Protected Disclosure until now, including foster carers, volunteers, and board members. The law protects whistleblowers from being dismissed or penalised for reporting possible wrongdoing.

The move has been welcomed by a group of 52 foster carers, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of the child in their care. A spokesperson for the group said: “Foster carers now have an opportunity to raise concerns of alleged wrongdoing, and this was badly needed.

We are caring for the country’s most vulnerable citizens, these children are faceless, nameless and voiceless. They live in the house with us, we are their stand-in parents, so we need protection.

Tusla’s figures show there are 4,000 foster carers and 5,171 children in the care of the State. The Ombudsman Ger Deering has taken up the role as Protected Disclosure Commissioner.

Under Section 8 of the new act the Department of Children can receive a disclosure from a foster carer and forward it to the commissioner. The foster carer may also submit their disclosure directly to the commissioner under Section 7 of the act.

The commissioner’s office has seven days to acknowledge the correspondence and 14 days to decide if it will be examined there or sent to another regulatory body.

Labour’s spokesperson on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, Ged Nash, told the Irish Examiner: “It’s a significant piece of legislation for volunteers, foster carers, and board members who now have the security to report these issues while having the protection. It is part of the European Union requirement and to comply with the EU whistleblowers directive, which is very much welcomed.”

In a statement, a spokesperson for Tusla said the agency “is in the process of reviewing its policy". It said: “The agency is committed to hearing their concerns and dealing with these concerns as quickly as possible.

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“Within Tusla’s Protected Disclosure Policy, a “worker” is defined as including any current or former employee, independent contractor, sub-contractor, agency worker, apprentice, and any person who interacts with the workplace on a contractual basis. Tusla is not empowered to accept disclosures from anyone who is not considered a worker as defined in Tusla’s Protected Disclosures Policy.” 

A spokesperson for the Department of Children said: “Tusla is correct to state that there is no protected disclosures policy for foster carers as Tusla does not have a worker/employer relationship with foster workers. However, when any protected disclosure is made to the minister, it will be identified as such and sent to the Protected Disclosures Commissioner. 

"It will not be investigated by this department beforehand. The Protected Disclosures Commissioner will then make a decision on whether to allocate or delegate correspondence to another relevant body and they are required to give a response within seven days.

“The Protected Disclosure could, in theory, be sent back to this department where it would be assessed under the provisions of the Protected Disclosure legislation.”