The Government is to set up a new independent board to co-ordinate provision of places for disruptive children in the wake of the recent controversy over a 17year-old disturbed girl which led to conflict between the Government and the High Court.
Amendments to the Children Bill, to be published next week, will propose that the management of accommodation and services for such children should be centralised in the new Special Residential Services Board, The Irish Times has learned.
The change follows sharp criticism of the lack of co-ordination among the three Government departments which currently have responsibilities in the area.
Last month, Mr Justice Peter Kelly threatened to hold three Government Ministers in contempt of court if they did not provide a suitable place of detention for a seriously disturbed 17-year-old girl according to a standard set down by him.
The High Court will also begin an inquiry next month into the escape of a 15-year-old girl, Kim O'Donovan, from health board care. In August she was found dead in a Dublin city B&B of a suspected drugs overdose. Her parents later said she had received "ineffective care within a system which failed her".
While the latest move comes in the aftermath of these controversies, senior Government sources insist that plans for the board were in train before the recent High Court case. The board has been in existence as an interim body with more limited powers since April, and sources say the Government planned to increase its powers before Mr Justice Kelly's recent ruling.
The new board will have its own chief executive and staff and the Minister of State responsible for Children, Ms Mary Hanafin, will have political responsibility for it. It will have a chairperson and 10 members, including representatives of the three Government departments.
It will deal both with young offenders and children who, while not offenders, are seen as disruptive and in need of secure accommodation.
In the case of non-offending children, a health board seeking a special care order will first have to bring a report to the new board. The board will then consult independent assessors and, if they agree that a special care order is warranted, an application will be made to the courts.
In the case of young offenders, probation officers will present reports on specific children to the board, which will then contact the various detention schools to ensure that a suitable place is provided.