Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 September 2016
135. Deputy Colm Brophy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if there is a single dedicated national co-ordinator in place to oversee implementation of all child protection requirements for schools. [27636/16]
View answerThe Department of Children and Youth Affairs has overall responsibility for developing the State’s policy and legislative framework in relation to child welfare and protection. A central element of this framework is the Children First – National Guidance published originally by that Department in 1999 and updated in 2011. The Children First Guidance operates as the over-arching national guidelines for all individuals and agencies that come into contact with children.
The role of my Department is to provide guidance and support to schools in implementing Children First. In that regard, in autumn 2011, my Department published updated Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools based on the revised Children First. The procedures apply to all recognised schools.
The purpose of these procedures is to give direction and guidance to school authorities and school personnel in the implementation of Children First when dealing with allegations/suspicions of child abuse and neglect. In relation to implementation of Children First, the 2011 procedures for schools incorporated significant improvements to the previous school guidelines, including strengthening the local oversight arrangements, all of which are intended to better ensure consistent and uniform implementation of Children First across all schools. The improvements include a new template child protection policy, a requirement that all primary schools fully implement the Stay Safe programme and improved oversight arrangements at Board of Management level.
The Whole School Evaluation (WSE) inspection process by my Department’s Inspectorate also incorporates an assessment of a school’s compliance with my Department’s requirements under the child protection procedures.
At national level, my Department participates in a Children First inter-Departmental Committee, chaired by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, the role of which is to oversee the implementation of Children First across all Government Departments.
The Deputy will be aware that the Children First Act 2015 will, when fully commenced by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, put elements of the Children First- National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children (2011) on a statutory footing. The Act provides for a number of key child protection measures such as a requirement on organisations providing services to children to keep children safe and to produce a Child Safeguarding Statement; a requirement on defined categories of persons (mandated persons) to report child protection concerns over a defined threshold to the Child and Family Agency and a requirement on mandated persons to assist the Agency in the assessment of a child protection risk, if requested to do so by the Agency. Under the Act, the Children First Interdepartmental Implementation Group has also been put on a statutory footing.
Work is currently underway in the Department of Children and Youth Affairs in relation to publishing an updated Children First to reflect the Act’s requirements. The commencement of the 2015 Act and the publication of a new Children First will necessitate changes to the existing procedures for schools. In preparation for the forthcoming changes, my Department has recently commenced a review of the existing procedures for schools in consultation with the relevant education partners.
