AROUND 30 CHILDREN were reported as missing during a recent inspection on a Tusla welfare service provided to unaccompanied and separated children seeking international protection.

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) today published an inspection report on Tusla’s Separated Children Seeking International Protection service. 

This is a standalone Tusla service which aims to offer an urgent response to the needs of unaccompanied minors and separated children seeking international protection who arrive in Ireland.

Missing children

In the most recent inspection, between 28-30 January and on 5 February, HIQA found that around 30 children missing and remained unaccounted for at the time of the inspection.

In addition to this, 27 children had been reported missing at various stages of the inspection and returned to their placements.

HIQA inspectors sampled ten cases where children were reported as missing and found that the service was not managing these cases in line with the joint national protocol between An Garda Síochána, the HSE and Tusla.

HIQA found that strategy or management meetings were not held on the majority of these ten sample cases, which it said was “concerning given the vulnerability and risk given the length of time some of these children were missing”.

Strategy meetings were requested in four of the 10 cases reviewed, but two of those requests were made five months after the child was reported as missing.

HIQA also found that the service did not work closely with all relevant professionals to identify and respond quickly to protect vulnerable children.

While there were some channels of communication with the PSNI with respect to the location of children reported missing in Ireland, improvement was required to liaise with counterparts across Europe with respect to children missing, particularly where there were concerns about child trafficking and exploitation.

In one case, a 12-year-old child went missing over 18 months previous, however there were no records of strategy meetings with gardaí, or of contact with UK or Northern Ireland counterparts to share information in an effort to locate the child since that time.I

Inspectors also found that missing children’s cases were incorrectly classified as “medium priority” in cases where children were deemed a flight risk, where there were indicators of trafficking and exploitation, and where there were additional child protection concerns.

HIQA also found that safety planning was not routinely completed when a trafficking risk was identified for a child.

In eight cases where there were concerns about trafficking and exploitation, and in one case where a child said they felt unsafe, there were no safety plans in place to manage those risks.

Inspectors also found that assessments were largely focused on children’s immediate needs and did not record analysis of risk or assessment of concerns regarding trafficking and child exploitation.

The inspection also found there was “mixed practice” regarding the management of risk when trafficking concerns were identified and that where there were indications of trafficking on file, the trafficking toolkit was not routinely used to inform planning.

Inspection

On the last inspection in November 2023, of the 10 standards assessed, nine were not compliant and one was substantially compliant. 

HIQA found that the Tusla service had not taken “timely action” to address previously identified non-compliances.

While inspectors deemed that there was some progress, there are still “concerns” about the service.

In the previous 12 months, there had been 877 referrals to the service amid a “continued deficits in resources”.

HIQA warned that this “poses risks to children accessing the service”.

At the time of inspection, there were 321 open cases and a significant number of unallocated cases – workload was identified as one of the main reasons for staff leaving the service.

HIQA noted that the service responded in a timely manner to provide an emergency response to children when they presented to the service and that children’s immediate needs were met and they were placed in emergency accommodation following their arrival.

However, HIQA said improvement is required to ensure the service responds “appropriately” after their arrival.

A dedicated team was established as a short-term measure to ensure oversight of cases moving from intake and assessment teams.

Some 61% of children were assigned to this dedicated team while they were awaiting the allocation of a social worker.

During this interim period, some tasks were completed by an assigned social worker and social care staff.

However, a review of case files demonstrated communication gaps once children were in their placements.  

There were also delays in carrying out safeguarding visits once children were accommodated and there were no records of safeguarding visits to children in three cases.

Following the inspection, HIQA escalated a number of cases in order to seek assurances about the management of issues identified.

HIQA said it had received “satisfactory assurance” in respect to the management of those cases.

The area manager is said to have provided “satisfactory assurances” that an improvement plan would be put in place.

A compliance plan was also submitted, outlining specific actions that are to be taken to address non-compliances.