Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has confirmed that the number of social workers assigned to its Children in Care team in County Clare will be doubled this summer, following sustained pressure and recent Dáil contributions from Clare Fine Gael TD Joe Cooney.
In a statement, Tusla said that the Clare team will return to a full complement of staff in the coming weeks, rising from three to six social workers.
While Deputy Cooney welcomed the news, he warned that serious underlying issues within Tusla’s services in Clare remain unresolved.
“The total number of social workers employed in the Clare Children in Care team since 2021 is 14, which clearly suggests a high turnover and lack of continuity of care for the children,” he said. “There are currently just three social workers working within the Tusla Children in Care team, who are allocated responsibility for 43 children in care. One social worker has a caseload of 18 children, with the other two catering for 14 and 11 children respectively. In addition, the Child Protection and Welfare team has 14 children in care in Clare allocated to social workers on that team.”
He added that he has received troubling accounts from families and professionals engaging with Tusla services in Clare.
He explained, “What I am hearing about the type and level of care being provided for some of the most vulnerable children in our society causes me great concern. I am happy to hear that the complement of social workers will rise from three to six in the coming weeks, but I remain deeply concerned about the turnover rate for social workers in Clare and the number of children who have no allocated social worker and are currently placed in foster or residential care. The Minister for Children, Disability and Equality also told me in the Dail last week that there are 77 children currently on the waiting list”.
Deputy Cooney described how the lack of continuity in care is having a damaging effect on vulnerable children, “The low number of social workers and extremely high rates of staff burnout and staff turnover have resulted in severely traumatised children being handed from one social worker to another, with little or no continuity of care. I have heard of children being placed in special emergency arrangements through the out-of-hours service, which only operates from 6 p.m., and can result in children being sent to placements anywhere in the country, including Donegal or Cork.”
He also raised concerns about the suitability of emergency care providers, and the lack of support for foster families managing increasingly complex needs.
“What I have heard really leads me to question whether the care being provided by the emergency care providers is appropriate to the needs of these children. I’ve also heard from foster families who are doing their best but are left without the necessary levels of support,” added Deputy Cooney.
And while he welcomed the immediate step of doubling staff, Deputy Cooney stressed that Tusla must go further, “This increase is a positive step – and I welcome it – but it cannot be a temporary fix. Tusla must address the root causes of the staffing crisis, including high workloads, burnout, and retention. Without tackling these systemic issues, we risk seeing the same pattern repeat, to the detriment of vulnerable children who need stable, consistent support.”
