The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has today published an inspection report on the child protection and welfare service operated by the Child and Family Agency (Tusla) in the Dublin South Central service area.

HIQA conducted this monitoring inspection between 8 and 11 April 2025 to assess the progress the service had made to address non-compliances since the previous inspection in February 2024.

In 2024, Tusla had submitted a national compliance plan to HIQA which outlined how it would improve services where there were significant numbers of children waiting for a service. Despite some progress in the reduction of the percentage of children who were not allocated to a social worker and in the recruitment and retention of staff, significant concerns remained about this service’s capacity to fulfil its statutory obligations. Overall, the quality and safety of the child protection and welfare service required significant improvement to ensure that it met the needs of all children, in line with the National Standards for Child Protection and Welfare (2012) and Children First: National Guidance for Child Protection and Welfare (2017).

Risks identified during HIQA’s inspection of the service in 2024 remained on this inspection. HIQA re-escalated risks concerning the inadequate management and oversight of children listed on the Child Protection Notification System (system that has oversight of children at ongoing risk of significant harm) to Tusla’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO). HIQA also brought concerns about the continuous challenges to the capacity of the service to manage referrals and complete assessments in a timely manner, and the ongoing shortcomings in the safeguarding of children to the attention of the CEO. Appropriate assurances were provided by the CEO. HIQA will continue to monitor the service to support improvements.

HIQA found that governance systems at all levels did not ensure that all children received a timely and safe service due to the shortfall in resources to meet demands in the area. While the majority of vacant posts had been filled, there remained an inadequacy of resources allocated to meet the demand for the service resulting in many staff having unmanageable caseloads and a lack of capacity to transfer cases across the teams. A range of supports were in place to support new staff, such as enhanced induction supports and mentoring programmes, but there remained a significant gap in the level of required skills and experience in the area to deliver effective services to children.

Positively, children who were allocated a social worker received a good quality service and staff were positive about support they received from their managers and demonstrated a commitment to providing a good-quality service that met children’s needs.
 

Following the inspection, management submitted a satisfactory compliance plan. 

Notes:

• HIQA is authorised by the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality under Section 8(1) (c) of the Health Act 2007 to monitor the quality of services provided by the Child and Family Agency (Tusla) to protect children and promote their welfare. HIQA monitors Tusla’s performance against the National Standards for the Protection and Welfare of Children (2012) and advises the Minister and Tusla.
• The Child Protection Notification System (CPNS) refers to a secure database that contains a national record of all children who have reached the threshold of being at ongoing risk of significant harm and where there are ongoing child protection concerns.