Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 30 April 2014
698. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of times the 116000 number has been contacted; and her views on whether the 116000 number is sufficiently advertised and has wide public awareness. [19257/14]
View answer699. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will confirm that members of the public can call the 116000 if they see a missing child or if they have information to pass on regarding a missing child; and if so whether the public will be made aware of this fact on posters, advertisements and so on. [19258/14]
View answer700. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children requested funding for the 116000 number in 2010. [19259/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 698 to 700, inclusive, together.
With regard to the Deputy's question concerning an application for funding of the 116 000 Missing Children's Hotline in 2010, I can confirm that correspondence was received by the then Office of the Minister for Children from the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) in December 2010. The ISPCC expressed their belief in the need for the establishment of a Missing Children Hotline in Ireland and made known their desire to operate the service. As they were not in position to fund same, they requested funding for the Hotline. Following detailed consideration of the matter by a Project Group established by my Department, the Missing Children Hotline was established with financial assistance from my Department and EU funding. It has been operating on a full-time, 24/7, basis since end April, 2013.
Members of the public may call the 116 000 Hotline if they see a missing child or if they have information to pass on regarding a missing child. Information in this regard is published on the ISPCC web page entitled 'Missing Childrens Hotline.' It is important to appreciate that the Hotline is a support service rather than an emergency service. Where callers require assistance outside the scope of the services provided by the Hotline, they are referred to An Garda Síochána or whichever branch of the emergency services is appropriate. Staff of the Missing Children Hotline will also pass on information to the emergency services when it is appropriate to do so.
The 116 000 Hotline was set up to provide advice and emotional support to parents/guardians whose child is missing. This advice and support may also be accessed by the extended family of a child who is missing or, indeed, by the child themselves. A key component of the service is an awareness programme. It is vital that those who could benefit from the service know that it exists and that users are aware of the scope of the service and I am satisfied as to the approach taken by the ISPCC in that regard.
During the initial set up phase of the service, the ISPCC focused on community based promotion of the service. This included presentations to local community groups. Subsequently, posters, flyers and business cards have been distributed to all Garda stations from Garda Headquarters, and promotional material has been distributed to a variety of community based projects in various locations throughout the country. Further, the ISPCC makes extensive use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter to advertise this service on an ongoing basis. The successful launch of the service in 2013 together with the launch of the 116 000 Missing Children Hotline website (www.missingchildrenhotline.ie) also serve to promote the service.
Statistics provided to my Department by the ISPCC for 2013 confirm that a total of 523 calls were received via the Hotline.
