TUSLA HAS BACKED out of a decision to end a contract with a specialist support service for foster carers, saying it was “deeply sorry for the concern and worry this has caused”.

Foster carers in the south-east had expressed alarm at Tusla’s decision to finish its longstanding arrangement with St Bernard’s Children’s Services, based in Fethard in Co Tipperary, which provides tailored therapeutic supports to foster children and their carers.

That decision was taken in January, but not communicated to foster carers until last month.

Foster carers were so upset by the news that they forwarded a letter to Minister for Children, Norma Foley, in which they said: “Some foster carers have said they will not be able to continue fostering because their situation will be untenable.”

One foster carer, who spoke to The Journal, said: “For the foster carers and the children as well, it is absolute gold, this service. It maintains children in foster care placements.

“I had the support of that programme – everyone I know in my peer group are still fostering because they had support of that group or of the people who went through that group.

The service St Bernard’s gives us is, in theory, the service Tusla should be giving us, but they can’t.”

It’s understood the service costs approximately €417,000 a year and that 40 foster carers can be engaged with it at any one time, with therapeutic interventions aimed at both carers and children.

In the letter to the minister, the foster carers said: “There is no replacement for this service as it is the highest model of good practice in foster care and one which needs to be rolled out throughout the whole country.”

Tusla apology

Tusla is reconfiguring its services and the arrangement with St Bernard’s was to conclude in the coming weeks – but now there has been a U-turn.

A Tusla spokesperson said: “In 2025, as part of a service review, there were challenges identified in the commissioning of St. Bernard’s service, which needed to be addressed. The decision of local management was to cease the commissioning of this service.

“In retrospect, there was not appropriate consultation and engagement with foster carers and we are deeply sorry for the concern and worry this has caused foster carers in the south-east.”

The spokesperson said that at recent meeting foster carers had made clear how strongly they felt about retention of the service. This has now led to local management deciding to maintain service provision with St. Bernard’s for 2026, with no disruption to current supports.

“The local team will engage with Foster Carers throughout 2026 in the co-design of supports to be provided in 2027,” the Tusla spokesperson said.

The foster carer who had spoken to The Journal about the situation said on hearing the news of the Tusla U-turn: “We welcome it but we want it restored completely and indeed replicated around the country.”