Garda checks on staff employed at a Dublin children's residential centre operated by a health board were inadequate, an inspection team has found.
The team from the Social Services Inspectorate found that no Garda clearance had been obtained for more than one-third of the 27 staff at St Vincent's Group Homes when it carried out its inspection in July.
Subsequent to the inspection, the South Western Area Health Board obtained Garda clearance for all members of staff who had not been cleared initially.
The inspection team also reported that references were available for only a small number of staff. In only a minority of cases had these been obtained before the staff member began work.
"The situation was altogether unsatisfactory. A different system was required, one that was consistent with the board's responsibility to ensure that the children and young people in its care receive a safe and good-quality service," the inspectors said.
Failure to obtain Garda clearance and references for staff working in centres for children which are operated by health boards is in breach of the national guidelines for the protection and welfare of children.
St Vincent's Group Homes comprises two children's residential centres. The two centres are treated as a single unit. They offer long-term care to a total of 12 boys and girls. Their location in west Dublin is not mentioned to protect the identity of the children.
The report also said that a safety audit carried out on both centres in September 2001 listed a total of 50 hazards which needed attention. However, at the time of the inspection 10 months later only 11 of these had been addressed by the health board.
"In the first centre, three high-risk hazards were still in place, and in the second, one was still in place. High-risk hazards are those which require immediate action. It is not acceptable that corrective action had not been taken, but the health board gave a commitment to make them a priority," the inspectors said.
The report noted that only six staff members had professional childcare qualifications recognised by the Department of Health and Children.
"The board had recognised the difficulty of having largely untrained staff teams working in its children's residential centres and had been in negotiation with an institute of technology to develop a programme that would allow existing staff to obtain qualifying training. However, at the time of inspection no definite arrangements had been made."
Nevertheless, the inspection team found that the centres offered a good standard of care.
The health board said that it had worked closely at all times with the inspectorate to ensure that its recommendations were implemented. "In this regard, the board have recently appointed an experienced principal social worker to monitor the implementation of the Social Services Inspectorate's report and recommendations."
Many of the issues which were raised had been or were currently being addressed, it added.