The District Court granted care orders for Child 1, aged 12, and Child 2, aged 8, until each child’s 18th birthday, after both parents consented and admitted the facts in the HSE’s findings document.
The children were already in the care of the Health Service Executive (HSE) under interim care orders made on 16 September 2011 and extended 16 times. In a judgment dated 14 December 2012, the court found the threshold criteria under section 18(1)(a), (b) and (c) of the Child Care Act 1991 were met. It said the children’s health, development and welfare would suffer if care orders were not made.
The court cited the parents’ long-standing addiction difficulties, the mother’s history of criminal convictions and difficulties maintaining stable accommodation, her lack of contact with the children, and the parents’ admission that they could not presently care for them. The mother was in prison at the time of the doctor’s evidence. He said she had potential to address her addiction but would need ongoing counselling and follow-up support to remain drug-free. He described the father as having made significant progress over the previous three months and said he was optimistic if that progress continued.
The social worker told the court the children were settling into a recent placement close to family and extended family. Child 1 said he would prefer to live with his father or maternal grandmother; Child 2 said she would prefer to live with her maternal grandmother. The Guardian ad Litem (GAL) supported care orders for their full duration and said the children had a strong relationship with their maternal grandmother. The GAL recommended counselling for both children and supported contact with their father and extended family, and contact with their mother while she was stable.
The court approved the care plans, noting the GAL’s approval, and directed that access between the parents and children be at the HSE’s discretion under section 37. It said it had considered the importance of contact with parents and extended family. The orders do not specify a fixed access schedule.
Under section 47, the court directed that the case be re-entered on notice to the GAL if a social worker or fostering link worker was unallocated for six weeks, either child’s foster placement changed, or an annual child-in-care review was not carried out. It also directed that a fostering link worker be allocated and set a mention for 7 February 2013 to confirm this. Long-term psychotherapy supports were to be identified and provided to both children. The court recommended family support for the maternal grandmother and after-care reviews for each child on their 16th birthday.