Staff at a health board-run children's residential centre in Waterford were not properly vetted before they were taken on by the South Eastern Health Board, an inspection team has found.
Five of the staff had not been cleared by gardaí when the centre was checked by a team from the Irish Social Services Inspectorate in October. This is in breach of national guidelines for the protection and welfare of children.
Garda clearance for four of these five staff was obtained, however, after the inspection. The inspectors also found Garda clearance for 12 other staff was not obtained until some time after they began working at the centre which has a staff of 18.
National guidelines also indicate three references should be obtained before anyone takes up duty. Practice in this regard was also found to be unsatisfactory. "There were no vetting references at all for one of the staff and 13 staff had less than the required three references," the inspectors' report said.
"The board should ensure that all outstanding Garda clearances and references for current staff are followed up and that the Department of Health and Children's guidelines regarding procedures for vetting staff before employment are rigorously applied in all future appointments," it added.
Three boys and two girls were living in the centre at the time of inspection. Located in the Waterford countryside, it has not been named to protect the identity of the children.
Despite the inspectors' concerns in relation to staff vetting procedures, they noted that staff nonetheless provided a high quality service to the young people.
"They were cared for in a warm and professional manner and were positive about the care they received and about the relationships they had with the centre manager and staff.
"There was a clear ethos of respect for young people's rights. They were consulted about decisions that affected their lives and had confidence in the complaints procedure."
The centre was set up in 1999 to provide short-term care for two boys awaiting foster care places. It now provides long-term care with two of the children having been there for more than a year at the time of the inspection.
A spokeswoman for the SEHB said last night that all matters raised in the report had now been addressed.