Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 June 2026
776. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she is satisfied that no national review of permanency planning outcomes for children in care has been undertaken since 2020; if she will commission such a review; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45093/26]
View answer784. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether her Department will establish a national reporting framework for permanency outcomes for children in State care, including reunification, adoption, guardianship and long-term foster care outcomes; whether annual national reporting will be introduced on these outcomes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45322/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 776 and 784 together.
Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, publishes annual data in relation to children in care on its website: www.tusla.ie/publications/review-of-adequacy-reports/. This data includes information regarding the length of time children in care have spent in alternative care, at a given point in time. In addition, in 2022 the Department launched a research and data programme, Care Experiences: Journeys Through the Irish Care System, which is being run in close collaboration with Tusla. The Care Experiences Programme comprises a combination of primary research and administrative data analysis to examine and better understand the lives of children and young people in care and aftercare and adults who were in care as children, including permanency and their pathways through care more generally.
Tusla has advised that all placements of children in care are subject to review on a six-monthly basis for the first two years, and annually thereafter. These reviews consider and take account of the care plan for each child, including the permanency plan. Additionally, Tusla has developed a policy and operational document relating to permanency planning for children in care, the Pathways to Permanency Handbook. This document supports social work practitioners and decision makers in their aim to ensure stable and safe care placements for children.
Tusla has further advised that the objective of permanency planning is to provide children with the opportunity of reaching their full potential in a safe and secure base and secondly, to prevent drift in care when other more appropriate care solutions could be sought. A key component of permanency planning is concurrent planning which is an approach that involves social workers considering and pursuing all reasonable permanency options at the same time for children as soon as the children are admitted to care.
Tusla is required by law to be independent in its work as set out in Section 8(11) of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013. It would not be appropriate for the Department to interfere with the professional judgement of Tusla staff in relation to specific cases. Rather than seeking to intervene in the day-to-day operations, and in keeping with the provisions of the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies, the Department’s governance of Tusla is captured within its Oversight Agreement. The Department’s oversight of Tusla extends to the control environment it has in place including the work of its Audit and Risk committee which, in turn, is responsible for the identification and management of risks in the organisation.
Bringing a child into the care of the State and maintaining them there is a significant matter, which requires careful consideration of the specific circumstances of each individual child and their family. This consideration, whether by the Child and Family Agency or the Courts in relation to orders under the Act, must also have regard to the constitutional rights of all parties as they arise in each individual case. Within this context, the Department is advancing proposals within the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2025 to support permanency for children in alternative care. This includes proposals to impose a maximum duration on Interim Care Orders and amendments to clarify the criteria and purpose of Voluntary Care Arrangements, which will be subject to regular review.
