Grace report: 'Failure' in her care but insufficient evidence to show sexual or physical abuse 

Grace is the pseudonym of a woman now in her 40s who has been in the care of the State all her life.

A commission of investigation report into the 'Grace' case has found a "fundamental failure" by the South Eastern Health Board and the HSE in their duty of care to a severely intellectually disabled young woman.

However, the final substantive report on the first phase of the Farrelly Commission, published on Tuesday, has concluded that it is "not satisfied" that the level of evidence was such to fully establish sexual, emotional or physical abuse of Grace during her time in the foster home in the south east of the country.

The report states that owing to her disability and lack of speech, evidence from Grace was not available to the commission and it relied on hearing the evidence of other people and through considering records and documentation.

The Government has now decided to wind up the commission and will not look further into other allegations made in relation to others who were in the same foster home.

The investigation found there was a general absence of oversight and monitoring of Grace in her placement with Family X — the family at the centre of the investigation.

It also found that Grace was seriously neglected in relation to lack of attention to her dental care.

Grace is the pseudonym of a woman now in her 40s who has been in the care of the State all her life. Grace has profound intellectual disabilities and is non-verbal. Grace resided with Family X between the ages of 10 and 30, a period spanning 1989 until her move to residential care in 2009.

The commission was established in 2017 to investigate the care and protection of “Grace” and others in a former foster home in the south east which had been the subject of abuse allegations.

The 2,000-page report was based on 312,000 pages of documentation gathered over eight years, and the investigation included evidence heard across 251 days.

The Commission’s findings on the extent to which Grace suffered any abuse indicate the following:

• The Commission is not satisfied that the evidence was such as to establish that marks or bruises sustained by Grace was as a result of her having been subjected to physical abuse;
• There is a finding of neglect on the part of Mrs X in not ensuring that Grace attended the day centre more regularly and more consistently;
• The Commission is satisfied that there was neglect in the standard of care provided by Mrs X to Grace, based on evidence given in relation to Grace’s clothing and personal hygiene;
• The evidence to the Commission did not establish neglect of Grace in the provision of food and sustenance to her over the years she lived with Family X;
• There is a finding of serious neglect on the part of Mrs X in relation to the lack of attention to Grace’s dental care;
• There was a level of financial mismanagement or abuse by Mrs. X of Grace’s Disability Allowance in breach of her duties as Agent;
• The evidence did not establish that Grace had been subjected to sexual abuse over the years that she lived with Family X;
• The Commission is not satisfied that the evidence provided established or supported a finding that there had been emotional abuse of Grace.

Publishing the long-delayed report, Children's Minister Norma Foley described Grace's case as "harrowing" and "distressing" adding that her circumstances had a "devastating impact on her quality of life".

However, she said that since the case came to light, significant changes have been made to help safeguard against circumstances like this every occurring again.

The commission has also included a statement on Part X of its terms of reference around further work that it could undertake.

This statement indicates that there is an absence of information with respect to matters to do with the role or conduct of public authorities around seven cases identified, similar to the type of concerns raised in respect of Grace, apart from two, which were already examined.

The Government has now decided that "there is not a clear basis" for moving forward to a phase two of the investigation and the commission will be dissolved.

More to follow...