Berni Smyth, CEO of KDYS hosted a panel discussion on Child Care Laws and how they impact on children’s lives in KDYS Killarney centre last week.

This event was arranged to celebrate her first year in the CEO role with the organisation. The subject was very topical due to a number of proposed changes to Irish Child Care Laws currently under discussion and debate nationally.

The expert panel included Dr Maria Corbett, CEO of the Child Law Project, JP O’Sullivan, Networking and Communications Manager with MECPATHS and South Kerry man, Thomas O’Driscoll who is a qualified social worker with care experience and strong advocate for the rights of children in care and their parents.

The panellists encouraged an audience from a wide range of statutory and voluntary agencies across Munster to become familiar with the current proposals to revise the 1991 Child Care Act, enact the Child and Family Courts Bill and plans to implement ‘Fagin’s Law’ for child victims of criminal exploitation later this year.
While all of these measures were welcomed by the panel, there was a general consensus that legislation must be supported by strong implementation plans that are adequately resourced and every effort made to ensure that the application of these laws leads to child-centred decisions that will improve the quality of children and families’ lives.

Dr Maria Corbett advised the audience to take opportunities to provide feedback ‘by engaging in consultations and making representations to local politicians in order to address any areas for improvement or gaps now.”

JP O’Sullivan commented that “there is greater awareness and understanding of the challenges vulnerable children face including inter-generational patterns of abuse and the complex dynamics of child trafficking including grooming children into crime.”

Berni Smyth, CEO of KDYS, concluded the discussion by saying that “despite growing pressures on services caused by issues such as poverty, homelessness and the Ukrainian crisis, there is much to be hopeful about. More child-centred legislation will also support frontline workers on the ground who are usually best placed to identify concerns and who have long called for an effective, integrated response across child welfare and criminal justice laws.”