Tusla saw 500% jump in number of unaccompanied children needing a bed 

Tusla chief executive Kate Duggan  told the Public Accounts Committee that over the past four years Tusla saw a 500% increase in the number of separated children referred on from the International Protection Office for whom 'a bed has to be found for the night'. File picture: Brian Farrell

Child and family agency Tusla’s spend on special emergency arrangements for the provision of accommodation for children has risen 14-fold over the past four years, to €71m.  

The agency’s chief executive Kate Duggan told the Public Accounts Committee that during that time Tusla saw a 500% increase in the number of separated children referred on from the International Protection Office (IPO) for whom “a bed has to be found for the night”.