The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has today published an inspection report for a children’s statutory residential centres. HIQA monitors services used by some of the most vulnerable children in the state against the National Standards for Children’s Residential Centres to provide assurance to the public that children are receiving a service that meets the requirements of quality standards and to provide advice to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs and the Child and Family Agency (Tusla).

The report is in relation to an unannounced inspection carried out on 25–26 July 2019. This centre (centre ID number 4176) is located in Tusla’s Dublin North East region. 

Children received good quality safe care in this centre. Children who spoke to inspectors said that the centre was a nice place to live and they felt listened to by the staff team. They said that there was nothing that they would change about the centre. 

There were good systems in place which ensured accountability for practice, and risk was well managed. There was a systematic approach to quality, which assured practice and drove improvements. Child protection concerns were well managed, and staff training was up to date in core areas. However, the majority of national policies and procedures for children’s residential centres have not been updated by Tusla since 2010.  

Each child was allocated a named social worker, and planning for children, including their aftercare needs, was good. Children were well consulted and included in decisions about their lives. Restrictive practices were not routinely used in the centre and, when they were, they were appropriate and proportionate. Children’s care records were well maintained.

Action plan responses were provided to address the non-compliances identified in this inspection, along with timelines for implementing these actions.