Neglect of children is shameful

DESPITE trenchant and repeated criticism of the State’s attitude towards the plight of disturbed children, the failure to effectively tackle the serious social problems lurking behind this crisis is extremely disturbing.

Throwing money at the situation without tackling the deep-seated causes of this malaise is not the answer. Yet, an Irish Examiner report today shows that regional health boards are paying over €22 million each year to keep less than 100 children in high support and special care units.

What is particularly worrying is the ongoing policy of placing children in the care of private companies.

In the South Eastern Health Board area, for example, private firms are getting 5,000 a week to keep three children in care. Similarly, the Southern Health Board is forking out €69,975 every month for the care of two children.

So far this year, the Kildare-based South Western Area Health Board has spent €486,000 funding three places. And the Mid Western Health Board has one child in care but refused to reveal the cost.

But while huge sums of taxpayers’ money are being doled out to private firms, it is perplexing to note that almost none of the existing units has a full occupancy rate. What is going on? Why are the vacancies in existing centres not being filled?

Were it not for the courageous stance by High Court Judge Peter Kelly, who has repeatedly spoken out against the State’s neglect of abused and disturbed children, their plight could well have been swept under the carpet. All too often, out-of-sight out-of-mind would appear to be the attitude towards them.

To our shame, they have been put in adult psychiatric hospitals, garda stations, remand centres and, in one instance, in the Central Mental Hospital, all because of an apparent lack of adequate facilities where their immediate problems could be satisfactorily addressed. The Government argues that €225m a year has gone into childcare and family support services while 64 garda projects are aimed at turning youngsters away from crime.

However, the enormous cost of residential care services to regional health boards is, as Labour puts it, a damning indictment of Government policy in relation to the needs of children. Because of the failure to address the problems of disturbed children when they are young, health boards have to spend vast sums picking up the pieces later in their troubled lives, by which time it is often too late. Lack of early intervention means children at risk often end up on the wrong side of the law.

This point is reiterated by Fine Gael, which claims that rather than having to spend almost €250m per child per year to keep children in high support or special care units, earlier investment of resources would help support families where children are on a destructive path.

While opposition criticism of the Government’s failure to meet its undoubted obligation in this area is warranted, this administration is not solely to blame. Clearly, successive governments have allowed this deplorable situation to fester for years.

Against such a depressing backdrop, the collective failure of both the agencies of the State and of society at large, to meet the needs of troubled children, is unconscionable.