In the Waterford Wexford service area, two standards were compliant, two were substantially compliant and one was not compliant.

There were effective governance and management systems in place in the service area which supported safe and effective service delivery for many children and families, despite the challenges with staffing. Over the previous 12 months, the service area had focused on forensically examining their data in relation to waiting lists in order to enable them to have robust oversight of the cases awaiting allocation. The service was working to minimise the length of time children and families stayed on waiting lists and to provide them with a service as quickly as possible. Despite the significant efforts of the management team, the service area continued to be unable to deliver a timely service to all children. There was a schedule of audits in place and audits were carried out on a regular basis to drive quality improvement. Comprehensive action plans were put in place following audits. 

The service area had a clear strategic plan in place to utilise all available resources and staff were doing everything within their power to use the resources available to them effectively. Staff and managers had the required skills, competencies and experience; however, the service did not have sufficient staffing to meet the needs of all children in a timely manner. 

In the Cork service area, one standard was substantially compliant and four were not compliant.

The service area had experienced staffing challenges and a significant increase in referrals that impacted on its ability to consistently deliver a safe and effective service throughout 2024. Management tried to ensure that resources were deployed effectively; however, they faced challenges in improving service provision.

Management and staff continued to be stretched beyond their capacity to develop and put in place actions to mitigate against any risks posed to the service, meaning that not all children received a timely service in line with Children First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children (2017). Despite this, improvements had been made since the previous inspection in 2024 to strengthen governance and oversight of aspects of the service, such as staff knowledge and practice in the identification of cumulative harm, and adherence to the National Standard Operating Procedure – Special Emergency Arrangements for children placed in such arrangements. 

Following the inspection, HIQA identified new risks and escalated these to the area manager seeking assurance on how these would be addressed in order for the area to be brought into compliance. These risks included cases where physical abuse was alleged, where children were either not seen immediately or action was not taken following a visit, significant delays in intake records being completed without adequate safety for children being established and a lack of accountability for the monitoring and review of intake records assigned to child-in-care teams. 

In the Dublin South West Kildare West Wicklow service area, one standard was compliant, one was substantially compliant and three were not compliant.

The service area did not have sufficient staff to fulfil its statutory obligations to deliver timely and consistent services to all children. Despite the best efforts of management, there was a high number of children on waiting lists who did not have an allocated social worker. There was also a lack of appropriate alternative care placements for some children who required State care. There were identified risks in the service that could not be mitigated without significant additional resources. 

Despite resourcing challenges, increasing numbers of new referrals and increased complexity of cases, all new referrals were screened according to Children First (2017) and Tusla policy. The service was rigorously managed to maximise the safety and welfare of all children referred to it. The governance systems in place supported a safe and effective service for many children, despite insufficient resources to meet the consistently increasing demand. There were strategic and operational plans for the service which set a clear direction for improving the service and, specifically, reducing the number of unallocated cases. Staff demonstrated care and concern for the children using the service, and when children were allocated they received a good quality service.