Child referred to Tusla over sexual abuse concerns left on waiting list for 14 months

Tusla said in a statement that the service remained 'challenged by the scale of demand, and its current capacity'.

A child referred for sexual abuse concerns to child protection services was prioritised as "medium" and left on a waiting list for 14 months.

Despite a second concern raised about the child one month later, the child’s priority level for protection and care was not updated.

The case is one of a number highlighted in a new Hiqa inspection report on the child protection and welfare service operated by Tusla in the Dublin South Central area.

Other cases highlighted in the report include a referral from gardaí which indicated that a child may have been contacted by a “person of concern” known to gardaí. Despite this, the child’s case was prioritised as "low".

The child was placed on a waiting list for more than 12 months. No contact was made by Tusla staff to gardaí where the person subject to the abuse allegations lived to establish the level of risk.

Gardaí also referred a one-year-old baby to the service. “Further clarifying information was required to determine whether there was a risk to the baby, but this had not been sought six months later. This meant that the wellbeing of this baby was not established as required,” the report said.

'Significant improvements' needed

Hiqa conducted this monitoring inspection between April 8 and April 11, 2025, to assess the progress made to address non-compliances since the previous inspection in February 2024.

The inspector's report, published on Monday, found some improvements since the previous inspections.

However, “significant improvements” were needed in the service for the Dublin South Central area to ensure it met the needs of all children, Hiqa said.

This inspection found that the service area did not provide a good quality and safe service for all children, particularly those who were on the waiting list. The service area lacked the staffing capacity to consistently deliver a safe, effective, and timely service to all children.

The inspection report found that, of the five national child protection and welfare standards assessed, all five standards were not compliant.

Tusla said in a statement that the service “remained challenged by the scale of demand, and its current capacity”.

Although Dublin South Central has had an increase in staff and a drop in the percentage of children awaiting allocation, the area has faced rising demand for services, Tusla said.

Dublin South Central, which the report noted has “high levels of deprivation", received 7,781 child protection and welfare referrals in the 12 months prior to the inspection, Tusla said.

However, Tusla pointed to improvements despite heavy caseloads. The percentage of unallocated cases dropped from 54% in February 2024, to 41% at the time of the inspection.

It is currently at 34% “as a result of focused efforts in the area,” Tusla said.

“Inspectors found that, when children were allocated, the quality of services provided was good, and that the welfare of children was central to decisions made," Tusla said.