Opening Statement – appearance of Mr Joe Horan before the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children – 8 March 2012

Re: Proposed appointment as Chairperson of the Board of Management, Oberstown Children Detention Schools

Mr Chairperson, members of the Committee,

I am delighted to have the opportunity to be here with you today and to have the opportunity to discuss with you my nomination by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Ms Frances Fitzgerald TD, to the position of Chairperson of the Board of Management for the 3 children detention schools in Oberstown, Lusk, Co Dublin. These schools became part of the legal responsibility of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Ms. Frances Fitzgerald T.D., from on 1 January 2012. Formerly, they were under the authority of the Minister for Justice and Equality and until 2007, the Minister for Education and Science.

I am aware of the Government’s decision, adopted last year, of having those proposed to be Chairpersons of State Boards to appear before the relevant Oireachtas Committee. My understanding is that I should discuss the approach which I intend to take to the role of Chairperson and any points the Committee members may wish to make about the future contribution of the Board of Management.

Background and Experience

First of all, I wish to give the Committee some information on my background and experience. I have recently retired from the position of County Manager of South Dublin County Council, having served in that position since 2002. Before that, I was County Manager in Meath County Council for 6 years and I also served in a range of positions during my career in local government, in Wicklow County Council and Bray Urban District Council.

As County Manager of South Dublin County Council, I carried responsibility for provision of services to a population of approx 265,000, with a budget in 2012 of €237m and a staffing complement of 1,280 employees. I also had responsibility for assets of the Council to a value of €4.5 billion. I have also contributed to or otherwise served on the Boards of a range of public bodies, dealing with the areas of children’s welfare, members of the travelling community, transport issues, the information society, regional planning, IT for schools, workplace training, youth mental health and local policing. I also led a range of social inclusion projects in my time as County Manager, for example South Dublin County Council’s Social Inclusion Programmehas promoted a range of literacy projects in the Library Service. I also promoted the Council’s innovative “Social Credits Scheme”, which seeks to improve access to arts and sportsactivities for youngpeople normally excluded for such activity. The Council’s Organisational Change Programmedeveloped a comprehensive change management initiative based on introduction of information technology using all aspects of multimedia to change staff roles in all areas of the Councils work. This programme facilitated a radical change in the culture of the organisation.

Overview of the Children Detention Schools

I understand you have already received a background note on the 3 children detention schools which are based on the Oberstown campus. There are currently 3 children detention schools based there under a single Board of Management. These are: Trinity House School, Oberstown Boys School and Oberstown Girls School.

A new Board of Management is currently being appointed by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs which will be in place for a period of 2 years. The principal objective of the schools under the Children Act 2001 is to provide such care, education, training and other programmes with view to reintegrating the child into society.

Trinity House School operates as a self contained secure facility. Oberstown Boys School and Oberstown Girls School operate a more open model of detention, sharing some resources, such as education, recreation, maintenance and making use of the wider grounds within the campus boundary.

The 3 schools are funded by the Irish Youth Justice Service which is now a unit within the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. Each school has a Director who is responsible for the day to day good order, safety and security within their facility and acts in loco parentis for each child under the school’s supervision and care. The Directors report to the Oberstown Board of Management which meets on a monthly basis. The Board comprises the Chairperson and 12 other members, including an officer of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, nominees from the Ministers for Education and Science, Health, the local community in Lusk, Co Dublin and 2 staff representatives.

St Patrick’s Institution / 16 and 17 year old boys

At present, the 3 detention schools are responsible for providing children’s detention places for girls up to the age of 18 years and boys up to the age of 16 years.

I am aware that there have been many questions raised over the years by the ongoing detention of young boys aged 16 and 17 years in St Patrick’s Institution. It is the responsibility of the Minister to designate the category of child that can be detained in the children detention schools. I have been assured that the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, along with her Government colleagues, is committed to ending the practice of detaining 16 and 17 year old boys in St Patrick’s. She has recently indicated to this Committee that, in advance of obtaining approval for the proposed Oberstown capital development to increase the number of detention school places, she is pursuing interim solutions to this issue and an announcement is expected in the near future. I hope you will appreciate that it is a matter for the Minister to decide on and announce any such measures. If confirmed in the position as Chairperson of the Oberstown Board, I will be discussing this matter with the Directors of the schools and the Minister. I want to ensure that every possible cooperation is provided by the Oberstown campus in terms of assisting with any interim measures that may be approved by the Minister.

Personally, it seems that the ultimate solution lies in providing sufficient capacity on the Oberstown campus to accommodate all children in detention up to the age of 18. At present, there is not sufficient capacity on the Oberstown campus for all 16 and 17 year old boys. The Minister has confirmed her intention to continue to make the case for Government funding for a capital project to expand the capacity of the Oberstown campus. This will result in sufficient capacity to end the practice of detaining children in St Patrick’s Institution. In the event that funding for the capital project is approved, I will ensure that there is close coordination between the Board, the schools and the Irish Youth Justice Service to ensure that the project is successfully carried out while at the same time ensuring that the campus continues to operate normally and provides the required services for children in detention.

Links with other agencies and community services

I understand that one of the most important issues in this area is the ongoing development of appropriate linkages between the different agencies and services that impact on children in detention. I understand that good informal links already exist between the detention schools, the Irish Youth Justice Service and other relevant agencies such as the HSE, the Prison and Probation Services, the Gardai, the Courts Service, Vocational Education Committees and the voluntary sector, in particular the youth diversion projects in the community. I intend that the Board will review and extend these linkages with the aim of ensuring that good service standards are maintained for vulnerable children, both during their sentence in Oberstown and after their release into the community.

Development of National Specialist Service for young people

I have also been advised on the need for development of appropriate mental health services for children detained in Oberstown. The Irish Youth Justice Service is currently working with the HSE on improving the delivery of such services. I understand that a similar model is being pursued for this service for children in special care units managed by the HSE, and also the children detention schools. I see this as a very important development and one which is needed in any event given the objective of bringing all children’s detention services on to the Oberstown campus. The Board will have an important role in overseeing the development of these services.

Inspections by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA)

The children detention schools are independently inspected by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) at least annually using national standards for detention facilities. All HIQA inspection reports are published on their website and are circulated to senior officials and the Chair of the Board of Management. It is extremely important that there continues to be regular independent inspection of the children detention schools. I understand that HIQA has broadly approved of the level of care provided for children in detention but has suggested a number of improvements in some operational care policies in the past 2 years. As a result, new or improved policies have been put in place in areas such as child behaviour management, vetting, child complaints procedures and child supervision. Some further initiatives are due to be carried out shortly, such as staff training in health and safety in the workplace and a standard procedure for the use of child separations. Inspections of all 3 schools took place in November 2012 and the updated report from HIQA is due to be received shortly. I expect the Board will have an important role in ensuring that the 3 detention schools continue to meet any requirements set out by HIQA on foot of their inspections.

Operational reforms in the Children Detention Schools

There is of course an ongoing need to ensure that the detention schools are operated in an efficient and effective manner, in full compliance with other developments in the public service such as the ongoing pressure on staffing resources and budgets, and the need to adhere to public service reform and the Croke Park Agreement. I welcome the fact that a number of reforms have already been carried out on the campus to integrate the operations of the 3 detention schools, in areas such as care policies for children, payroll services and catering services. Further reforms are currently the subject of discussion between the Irish Youth Justice Service, Directors of the detention schools and unions on the development of more flexible staffing rosters for the campus. These discussions are ongoing under the terms of the Croke Park Agreement and are expected to conclude shortly. I hope there will be a successful outcome and expect that the Board will have an important role in ensuring that any changes are carried out efficiently while at the same time ensuring that all necessary services are maintained and if possible, further developed for children in detention. I understand that other initiatives are being developed for shared services in the areas of domestic services, transport, maintenance, use of technology and reviews of staffing numbers and expenditure. I have led a number of successful change management projects in my time in local government and hope to use this experience to assist the Board in providing effective oversight and encouragement for these developments.

Development of Integrated campus

I am advised that the medium term goal of the Minister is the further development of an integrated detention school campus in Oberstown, with the maximum use of shared services and common policies across the 3 children detention schools. This will become even more important in the event that funding is approved for the Oberstown development project, which would result in a single National Children’s Detention Facility on the Oberstown site.

The Public Appointments Service undertook a review of management structures in the detention schools during 2010, which focused on:

-  the development of a new management structure having regard to the closure of Finglas Child and Adolescent Centre, the transfer of staff, children and services to Oberstown, and plans for an integrated children detention school based on the Oberstown site

-  the development of individual and integrated team profiles at managerial level to facilitate the effective leadership of the proposed new structure

-  the development of a performance management culture and framework

-  the development of skills, expertise, and experience required in the integrated structure

-  the development of a supportive training strategy for management and staff.

The Public Appointments Service submitted its final report on the review in 2011 and the recommendations are currently being considered by the Minister. Clearly, it is important that there continues to be a focus on management and staff development on the campus, as well as other issues such as performance management, skills development, communication procedures and training.

Vision for the Oberstown Campus / Main Priorities

I would summarise my objectives for the Board of Management of the Oberstown campus as follows:

The Board should make every effort to contribute towards interim measures that are aimed at making an impact on the number of 16 and 17 year old boys detained in St Patrick’s Institution during its term;

I hope the Board will have the opportunity to deal with the issue of managing the proposed capital development to increase the operational capacity of the Oberstown campus;