One Day in Tusla in 2024

On one day in Tusla, staff in six regions and 17 areas will deal with over 385 referrals relating to children. Each referral received is reviewed by a duty social worker or team leader within 24 hours of being received – in line with Children First, National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children (2017). Where an immediate risk to a child is identified, an immediate protective response is taken.

108 of these referrals need further enquiry and of those, 37 will move on to an initial assessment, where a social worker gathers and considers relevant information regarding the reported concern about the child. Some referrals may require and receive a welfare response from Tusla Family Support workers and partner services. A child is only brought into care as a last resort and only if it is in the best interests of the child. On one day in Tusla more than three children will come into care, and two of these children will be coming into care for the first time. When a child is placed in care, the parents of the child are provided with support services and are supported to address existing concerns. On any given day in Tusla, Social Workers will be present at 54 cases in court nationally.

Children and young people who have left, or will be leaving, care will continue to be supported by Tusla staff through the 17 Tusla Aftercare Services across Ireland.

Tusla Fostering recruitment teams are busy recruiting critical new foster carers, the backbone of our care system in Ireland. Fostering Link Workers and Peer Support Workers are providing support and guidance to foster carers. In 2024, there were 3,809 foster carers on the panel of approved foster carers. On one day in Tusla, the National Fostering Team will receive almost four enquiries from members of the public who are interested in becoming foster carers. Following the assessment process, more than one foster carer will be approved each day.

Tusla Adoption staff help to guide people through the adoption process, and on one day Tusla will process more than eight enquiries for an assessment of eligibility and suitability to adopt. Meanwhile, Birth Information and Tracing staff will process more than 37 information requests and more than 30 tracing requests under the Birth Information and Tracing (BIT) Act, providing people with information relating to their birth, care and early life where it exists on a file, record or database, and supporting them through the process.

Where a family, child or parent needs additional support, Tusla’s Family Support Workers provide extensive family support services as part of its PPFS programme to ensure that the needs and strengths of children and families are effectively identified, understood and responded to. On one day in Tusla, more than 192 children will be referred to Tusla Family Support Services.

Meitheal can be used when a family will benefit from more than one type of support: when a range of skills and approaches would be useful to improve the wellbeing of a child, and their family. On one day in Tusla, more than 10 Meitheal processes will be initiated.

In addition to Family Support Services provided directly by Tusla, Tusla is funding services that are providing daily support to families and communities across Ireland. Each day, Tusla will fund an additional 601 local services across Ireland.

Tusla is also the independent statutory regulator of early years services in Ireland. On one day in Tusla, staff in the Early Years Inspectorate will inspect more than nine pre-schools, playgroups, nurseries, creches or other similar services that cater for children aged 0–6 years. Staff will also ensure that services are registered and, where necessary, that regulatory actions are enforced. These inspections help to provide assurance to parents and the public that good standards of learning, care and safety are maintained.

When it comes to school-aged children, Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) works to achieve the best educational outcomes through the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. On one school day in Tusla, more than 46 referrals will be screened by the Educational Welfare Service. School absences often require an integrated response, and each day Educational Welfare Officers work closely with schools, educational support services and other agencies to support school attendance, working with 44 children each school day, including home visits, educational welfare conferences and collaboratively working with different agencies to support the child in their education.

Each day, Tusla staff work in collaboration with other State agencies to promote the safety and wellbeing of children and young people who arrive unaccompanied in Ireland seeking international protection. On one day in Tusla, more than two unaccompanied young people will be admitted to care or otherwise accommodated by Tusla’s SCSIP team. The priority for these children and young people is to reunify them with their families where possible, either in Ireland or in other EU member states. Where family reunification is not possible, children and young people will typically be accommodated in family-based care or children’s residential centres. There are 189 statutory, private and voluntary residential centres across the country, and three Special Care Units, which provide care and support for children and young people 365 days and nights a year.

At night, when local area offices and many other support services are closed, Tusla’s National Out of Hours Service, which works 365 days a year, steps in to ensure the ongoing safety and welfare of children. Each night or day of the weekend more than five children will need an out of hours intervention or support, and more than two children will need an emergency placement. On the next working day, the National Out of Hours Service will work with the local area teams to follow up with the child and/or family.