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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:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    14

    Categories:

    Special Care

    High Court hears of many issues with availability of onward placements

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    13

    Categories:

    Drugs, Special Care

    High Court hears of problems of drug use by children in special care

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    12

    Categories:

    HSE, Lack Of Service, Physical Disability

    Manager of HSE disability service summonsed to court

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    11

    Categories:

    CAMHS, Mental Health

    Judge directs immediate assessment for deeply troubled child not permitted onto CAMHS waiting list

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    10

    Categories:

    Mental Health, Mental Health Act

    Order extended for child detained in specialist mental health unit due to serious self-harming behaviours

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    9

    Categories:

    Eating Disorder, Mental Health, Mental Health Act

    Judge extends order for child detained in a specialist mental health centre for her own safety

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    8

    Categories:

    Neglect, Sexual Abuse

    Care order granted for girl who had made “remarkable progress” despite “extraordinarily difficult” childhood

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    7

    Categories:

    Addiction, Behavioural Problems, CAMHS, Criminality

    Judge said “disgraceful” that no CAMHS assessment or placement for teen whose situation GAL said was “as bad as it gets”

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    6

    Categories:

    Africa, Unaccompanied Minor

    Full care order for unaccompanied minor

  • Year:

    2021

    Volume:

    2

    Case number:

    5

    Categories:

    Africa, Unaccompanied Minor, Voice Of The Child

    Judge speaks to unaccompanied minor, grants care order

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.