Child protection experts have warned that the government's new developing aftercare policy for vulnerable young people leaving State care does not provide sufficient protection.
Geoffrey Shannon, a solicitor and child law expert at Focus Ireland and EPIC (Empowering People in Care), has said that the new policy does not provide more than what was already in place under the previous government.
A new aftercare policy began to be rolled out in 2011 after the Ryan Report (the 2009 report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse) recommended that children who have been in State care should have access to support services. As part of that, 10 new dedicated aftercare workers are being recruited by the HSE to supplement the existing 45 workers.
The Director of EPIC, an independent organisation that works with children and young people in care, Jennifer Gargan, said that there are insufficient resources to implement the aftercare policy. Ms Gargan said that there were 100 people on a waiting list for aftercare services in one area in Dublin in December 2011.
Section 45 of the Child Care Act 1991 already outlines how young people leaving care "may be" supported by the Health Service Executive (HSE) between the ages of 18 and 21. Despite advocacy efforts from civic society an amendment to the Act that was passed in July 2011 did not enshrine a legal entitlement to aftercare.
Geoffrey Shannon says that the "Child Care Act as it stands is a hollow guarantee without including this legal right, there must be investment now to ensure there are sufficient resources in place to provide aftercare for the young people who require it."
At a recent conference hosted by Young People at Risk, the Minister said that she would meet with the HSE director of child and family services to discuss concerns raised by NGOs and others. At that conference, Paul Flynn (co-ordinator of the youth aftercare service at Crosscare) said that the needs of young people did not end when they reached 18 - and that the status quo was a pathway to "discrimination, isolation and marginalisation".
A spokesperson for the Minister commented that "national policy is being rolled out under the watch of the HSE's Aftercare Implementation Group, which includes representation from the HSE, mental health, family service and disability service, as well as representation from the voluntary sector"
Click here to see a piece by the Examiner.
Click here to see more information about aftercare policy and standards on the EPIC website.
Click here to read a briefing document on aftercare policy and implementation in Ireland.