Poverty, neglect and the inability of parents to cope are the main reasons children are taken into care, writes Carl O'Brien
A stark message emerges from the latest statistics on children in care in Ireland - more families than ever before are finding it difficult to cope and raise their children.
Official figures compiled by the Health Service Executive (HSE) show that a record 5,060 children were in State care in 2004.
While there may be a perception that most children in State care have been admitted due to physical or sexual abuse in the home, a breakdown of figures paints a different picture.
Poverty is the underlying cause behind most children entering the care system. About half of children are admitted into care due to neglect, family difficulties such as housing or finance, or their parents' inability to cope. Families in such circumstances have often fallen through society's cracks and find themselves unable to access support because of educational disadvantage, addiction problems or social exclusion.
Much smaller numbers are admitted as a result of physical abuse (6 per cent), sexual abuse (4 per cent) and emotional abuse (3 per cent).
That poverty and deprivation are ultimately the main factors behind children being admitted into care focuses attention on the level of support available for families in crisis. Disturbingly, the level of investment in family support varies dramatically in different parts of the country.
A yet unpublished report commissioned by the Department of Health shows that the west has the highest levels of investment in family support, while the eastern region has the lowest level. It is hardly a coincidence that the west has the lowest rates of children in care (31 per 10,000), while the east has the highest (57 per 10,000).
The separation of a child from their family and their admission into care is a step which has a profound effect on the life of a young person. Yet these regional variations indicate that children's chances of ending up in State care depend on where they live.
Whatever about sexual or physical abuse, issues of neglect and the inability of parents to cope are issues that can be minimised. Family support, parenting skills, youth advocacy programmes and access to therapeutic services all have a major role to play.
While more money is being spent on family support services, social workers say the response to children at risk is mainly crisis-driven rather than preventive. Waiting lists for therapeutic services and patchy availability of support is resulting in considerable frustration among professionals trying to meet the needs of families, against an administrative backdrop with little evidence of any overarching vision for the development of family support.
For example, a strategy for the development of family support was promised by the Department of Health in 2005, then early 2006. Eight months later there is still no sign of it.
Overall, no one is arguing that State care is not necessary for children. In abusive situations, it may be the only appropriate step. The spectre however that children may be needlessly ending up in care due to underfunding or lack of planning in the area of family support is a major State failure.