The agreement means that an out of hours service which was piloted in Cork will now be rolled out to all parts of the country, and includes 24/7 telephone support and advice on cases out of hours. On call social workers will now be able to respond directly to urgent cases requiring intervention and the service includes fostering and the Gardaí as well as TUSLA social workers. Participation is voluntary and Tusla is now seeking volunteers.

IMPACT national secretary Andy Pike welcomed the development of the new service, but said that all elements of the new operation would need to be kept under review. “This new service is a very positive development for Tusla, and we were happy to be able to reach an agreement that can improve and expand the service to children and families at risk. Unfortunately, there is a continuing and widespread concern about adequate resources as the agency is still short of staff” he said.

The service will be structured around eight contact points nationwide, with a minimum core group of 12 on-call social work staff at each contact point. Each core group will be made up of staff with a minimum of five years post-qualification experience in the field, working a maximum of one on-call shift per week, on a three weeks-on and one week-off rotation.

Tusla chief executive Gordon Jeyes told the Oireachtas Committee on Health & Children last week that a shortage of social workers at Tusla is delaying about 5,000 cases. A new report suggests that 44% of social workers have reported an unmanageable caseload burden, and that some children were waiting years to be allocated a social worker. The National Review of Cases Awaiting Allocation reports that six out of 17 Tusla child protection area managers have said they are not satisfied that all children at highest risk in their areas can be kept safe.

Andy added that a number of operational issues around the EOHS are still under discussion and will be resolved by September when the service is due to commence.