The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has launched a six-week public consultation on draft National Standards for Children’s Residential Centres.

Children’s residential centres are homes for children and young people who come into care when they cannot live with their own family. As of June 2017, there were over 350 children and young people living in residential care in Ireland.

To ensure children and young people receive the best possible care and support while they live in care, HIQA has developed draft national standards based on international best practice and in consultation with children living in residential care, their families and those involved in their care.

Rachel Flynn, HIQA’s Director of Health Information and Standards said: “It is important that all children in residential care are safe, listened to, involved in making decisions about their lives and that their rights are protected and promoted. Children also need to be supported to develop and to achieve their potential. The draft standards set out how children’s residential centres can do this.”

“These standards are about improving the experience of children living in care and will apply to all children’s residential centres. They show what a child-centred, safe and effective children’s residential centre should look like. They are also a guide for children living in residential centres and their families as to what they should expect from a service.”

The draft standards have now been published to allow further feedback from all those interested in the development of National Standards for children’s residential centres.

Rachel Flynn continued: “We welcome the views of children living in residential care, their families, the staff caring for them and anyone else who is interested in helping us to improve children’s residential care.”

The draft standards can be downloaded from www.hiqa.ie. All feedback will be analysed and considered before the standards are finalised and submitted for ministerial approval. The deadline for submissions is 5pm on Thursday 02 November 2017.

Read the standards.

Ends.

For further information please contact:

Marty Whelan, Head of Communications and Stakeholder Engagement

01 814 7480 / 086 244 7623 mwhelan@hiqa.ie

Notes to Editor:

• HIQA is the statutory body established under the Health Act 2007 (as amended) with responsibility for setting standards for health and social care services and ensuring that the standards are being met.
• The Department of Children and Youth Affairs are currently drafting new regulations which will give HIQA responsibility for the registration and inspection of all children’s residential centres.
• When finalised, HIQA’s National Standards for Children’s Residential Centres will supersede the 2001 standards.
• National and international evidence that informed the development of the draft standards can be found in a Background Document available on www.hiqa.ie.