Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 December 2025
810. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding any plans to expand the level of rehabilitation services available in Oberstown Children Detention Campus; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71379/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraOberstown is Ireland’s national centre for the detention, care and education of young people under 18 years referred by the courts on detention or remand orders. Established under the Children Act 2001, the campus provides individualised care to young people through an integrated multi-professional approach, enabling young people to address their offending behaviour and return successfully to society.
Oberstown delivers individualised care to each young person on campus. Each individual’s journey through care is informed by CEHOP®, a comprehensive framework to address needs in five key areas – Care, Education, Health, Offending behaviour and Preparation for leaving. Rehabilitation is the focus of all work with young people at Oberstown. Young people’s programmes are central to the Oberstown CEHOP® framework, helping young people address the underlying factors that contribute to their offending behaviour as well as promoting personal development and social skills. The suite of programmes is reviewed on an ongoing basis and expanded in line with the needs of young people. Placement planning, equipping young people for reintegration into society following release, is the focus of individualised care provided at Oberstown.
The campus offers young people a range of opportunities to develop vocational skills along with raising their awareness of employment and career opportunities. Vocational skills and work opportunities programmes currently on offer for young people include practical courses in horticulture, fitness instruction, catering, forklift and warehousing skills, motor mechanics, podcast and digital skills. Oberstown also offers young people courses leading to certificates that enhance their employment credentials, covering manual handling, SafePass, HACCP food safety, fire safety Awareness, and decorating skills.
The range of options is reviewed and expanded to meet the needs of young people and has developed in recent years in partnership with partner organisations including employers and other agencies, along with significant initiatives enabled by the Dormant Accounts Fund and Creative Ireland. Oberstown plans to continue to develop these options in line with its Strategy 2022-2026, Goal 3 of which states “We will partner with families, communities, agencies and services to deliver the best possible outcomes for our young people”.
