asked the Minister for Justice, in respect of Loughan House, (1) number and position of permanent staff, (2) number and position of temporary staff, (3) number of young people imprisoned there since its opening and the average sentence given, (4) average monthly number of prisoners there, (5) weekly cost of keeping a delinquent there; and if he will make a statement on the future of the prison and on the possibility of the use of fostering as an alternative for young offenders.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Loughan House Statistics.
14.
First of all, Loughan House is not a prison. It has been certified by the Minister for Education under section 45 of the Children Act, 1908, and fulfils the same role as the other schools so certified. The boys sent there by the courts are the kind that will not be accepted by any of the other schools or that cannot be kept in them.
The total number and grades of staff employed in Loughan House is 84 as follows: Director, 1; Assistant Director, 1; Care Supervisory Staff, 6; Care Staff, 51; Clerical Staff, 3; Trades Staff, 3; Farm Staff, 2; Welfare Officers, 2 (1 post vacant); Chaplain, 1; Nurses, 4; Domestic Staff, 10. In addition eight teachers employed by Cavan Vocational Committee work in the school.
The number of boys sent to the school since it opened was 40 and the average sentence was two years. The average number of boys in custody in the school has been 20 and the number of care staff on duty at various times during any 24 hour period ranges from five to 32, as follows: 8 a.m.—1 p.m., 20; 1 p.m.—2 p.m., 32; 2 p.m.—4 p.m., 27; 4 p.m.—5 p.m., 30; 5 p.m.—10 p.m., 15; 10 p.m.—12 midnight, 7; 12 midnight—8 a.m., 5.
A high ratio of staff to boys is absolutely necessary if control is to be maintained in as relaxed an atmosphere as possible. As will be clear, the need for 24 hour attendance by staff necessitates a high overall staff allocation.
The annual cost of running the school is in the order of £500,000. The running costs would not vary significantly whether the number of boys was 20—the present population—or 40 or ten. It will be possible to increase the number of boys being catered for when the construction of a services courtyard is completed.
The intention is that Loughan House will revert to use as a place of detention for youths in the 16-21 age group.
The boys in Loughan have been sent there by the courts having been convicted of offences, in some cases very serious offences, and, in any case, anything in the nature of fosterage would hardly be feasible for them at the ages at which they are convicted by the courts. The courts have, of course, power to commit young persons to the care of fit persons but, in general, the boys in the other certified schools would be more likely to be considered for that alternative to commital in custody than the boys in Loughan.