The number of children in State care has increased to more than 5,000 for the first time, with poverty and inability of parents to cope among the contributing factors. Carl O'Brien, Social Affairs Correspondent, reports
Figures provided to The Irish Times for 2004 also show that young people are almost twice as likely to enter State care in the east (57 per 10,000 children) compared to the west (31 per 10,000). The west has the highest levels of investment in family support services, while the east has the lowest.
Despite the economic success of the last decade, poverty appears to be the underlying cause behind most children being admitted into care. About half enter the care system because of neglect, family difficulties such as housing or finance, or parents' inability to cope.
The number of children in care has increased significantly over the last 15 years: from 2,700 in 1989 (25 per 10,000) to 5,060 (43 per 10,000) in 2004, according to figures compiled by the Department of Health and the HSE. The arrival of unaccompanied minors seeking asylum since the late 1990s has also contributed to the rise.
The Children's Rights Alliance, a coalition of 80 lobby groups, yesterday said that the figures illustrated the extent to which families were continuing to experience serious difficulties such as poverty, homelessness, addiction and mental illness.
Deputy chief executive Maria Corbett also expressed alarm at the regional disparities. "The Government must address this regional imbalance to ensure no child is taken into care due to the State's failure to provide their family with sufficient support and assistance."
Majella Ryan, acting national clinical director for the Cari Foundation (Children At Risk in Ireland), said that proper funding of family support services was of crucial importance. "While there will always be a need for some children to be admitted to care, family support can play a crucial role. The more support that can be put in place for parents, the better."
The placement of children in care is among issues which the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has indicated it will raise with the Government next month in Geneva. Under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the State has an obligation to support parents in carrying out their child-rearing responsibilities.
Many social workers suggest that a number of reasons are behind the long-term rise in the numbers in care, such as increased pressure on the family unit, addiction problems among parents and an increase in the number of single-parent families.
In contrast, other professionals suggest that the increase may be a testament to greater awareness of children's rights.