New Homepage 2025

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:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    43

    Categories:

    Abroad, Autism, Mental Health

    Extension of Interim Care Order for Child with ASD and mental health needs

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    74

    Categories:

    Foster Care Rights

    Enhanced rights granted to long-term foster carers

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    57

    Categories:

    Lack Of Placement, Missing In Care / Absconding / Running Away, Section 47

    Urgent re-entry after teenager absconds from foster placement

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    75

    Categories:

    No Allocated Social Worker

    Court hears update on CFA audit of cases where children in care had no social worker despite court direction; 685 breaches of court orders identified

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    70

    Categories:

    Lack Of Placement, Missing In Care / Absconding / Running Away, Section 47

    Emergency Care Order for young child who needed to be in special care but did not qualify, existing placement about to end

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    30

    Categories:

    Drugs, Emotional Abuse, Neglect

    Interim Care Order granted for teenager whose mother used drugs, sibling already in relative foster care

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    17

    Categories:

    Addiction, Drugs

    Care order granted to the age of 18 for 10-month-old baby who had little contact with parents since birth due to drug use

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    31

    Categories:

    Addiction, Additional Issues

    Application for an initial ICO reluctantly withdrawn by the judge in DMD

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    61

    Categories:

    Additional Issues

    Supervision Order re-entered for a teenager suffering serious medical condition

  • Year:

    2025

    Volume:

    1

    Case number:

    18

    Categories:

    Domestic Violence, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Witnessed Domestic Abuse

    Care order granted for young child where four other siblings in care

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.