Ombudsman raised lack of 24-hour child welfare service several times

THE OMBUDSMAN for Children Emily Logan last night said she had raised the lack of a 24-hour social welfare service on numerous occasions, following reports that a child had to sleep in a Garda station because no social workers could be contacted.

Ms Logan said she has recommended the creation of a 24-hour social welfare service to both the Government and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. Her comments came after it emerged that a 15-year-old boy had to sleep in a Garda station because social workers could not be contacted outside normal business hours.

The Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (AGSI) has written to Ms Logan asking her to take "urgent action" to ensure that an out of hours social worker service is provided for children at risk.

The 15-year-old boy was reported missing earlier this month in north Cork. He was found by gardaí near Charleville at 9pm, however, the AGSI said,emergency mobile phone numbers supplied by the Health Service Executive (HSE) were not contactable. The boy had to stay the night in Mallow Garda station on a makeshift bed.

AGSI spokesman Willie Gleeson said gardaí were not trained to deal with children and stations were not equipped to cater for them.

"Garda stations are also totally unsuitable places for accommodating children because they have to cater for many different kinds of persons, including those under the influence of intoxicants and those under suspicion for all kinds of crimes," said Mr Gleeson.

He said the AGSI had raised the issue previously with the Minister for Health. "There appears to be little progress so we are asking all organisations with an interest in child safety to get involved. It is time the State provided a service for its most vulnerable citizens," he added.

The HSE yesterday said that child protection social work services are provided Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm and that outside these hours gardaí can respond to emergencies.

A working group had been established two years ago to develop a model for an out of hours service for children and its report had been submitted to the Department of Health. A spokeswoman for Ms Logan said last night that the Ombudsman had not yet received the AGSI letter, but the issue of a 24-hour protection and welfare service for children was something she was continuing to work on.

"In her report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Ombudsman for Children recommended that a 24-hour social service should be introduced to ensure that vulnerable children are protected."

The UN committee subsequently recommended this service be established, the spokeswoman said. "The Ombudsman for Children has also raised this issue with the Minister for Health, and again in her recently published Annual Report to the Oireachtas," she said.