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Reporting on child care proceedings in the District Court in May 2025.

Falling Through the Cracks: An Analysis of Child Care Proceedings from 2021 to 2024
Latest volume of court reports from 2024
A summary of findings from 10 years of reporting

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    57

    Categories:

    CAMHS, Lack Of Service, Mental Health

    Judge critical of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) for delay in issuing report following assessment of child in care

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    56

    Categories:

    Autism, In Camera Rule, Lack Of Co-Operation Between State Agencies, Section 47

    Court hears of a “spectacular example of statutory agencies not working together” in case of autistic teenager

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    55

    Categories:

    Autism, HSE, Lack Of Service, Physical Disability

    Judge directs CFA to fund private speech and language therapy if HSE Children’s Disability Network Team could not provide it within 12 weeks

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    54

    Categories:

    Addiction, Foster Care

    Judge hears boy’s allegations he was subjected to bad experiences in foster placement

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    53

    Categories:

    Alcohol, Behavioural Problems, Foster Care

    Judge advises parents of child in care at home to apply for legal representation immediately

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    52

    Categories:

    Access, Addiction, Alcohol, Mental Health

    Mother directed not to attend the church for child’s First Holy Communion; attend a party on the day before instead

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    51

    Categories:

    Access, Foster Care, Mental Health

    Mother’s consent dispensed with to allow child go on holiday with foster parents; mother told to take down social media posts

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    49

    Categories:

    Physical Disability, Voice Of The Child

    GAL appointed to hear voice of child with special needs whose mother refused to accept directions in earlier supervision order

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    48

    Categories:

    Behavioural Problems, Mental Health, Missing In Care / Absconding / Running Away, Placement Breakdown, Special Care

    Teenager’s case re-entered following placement breakdown amid risk-taking behaviour, judge has “no words” for her situation

  • Year:

    2024

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    47

    Categories:

    Cognitive Disability, Lack Of Placement, Physical Disability, Residential Placement

    Judge considers residential placement for child with serious special needs at home under supervision order; problems for siblings; no placement found

This follows the discontinuation of its reporting in July 2024, as the contract with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) was coming to an end. We are very pleased that we signed a new two-year Agreement with the DCEDY in March and the members of our reporting panel have agreed to resume their work.

Over a twelve-year period, the Project provided information to the public on the operation of the child care system in the courts with the aim of promoting transparency and accountability. It published 1,050 individual court reports and a number of analytical research reports, all of which are available on this website.