Topics / Children in Care

A subject heading for parliamentary questions

Children in Care

358 questions from 46 TDs, between 5 February 2025 and 17 September 2026.

358
questions
353 written, 5 oral
46
TDs have asked
10
parties and groups
Independents counted together
3
departments asked

Questions per month

The record holds no questions for August, when the Dáil does not sit.

Jan 2025Oct 2026
Show as a table
MonthQuestions
January 20250
February 202519
March 202516
April 20258
May 20259
June 20252
July 202523
August 20250
September 20258
October 20250
November 202523
December 202511
January 202624
February 202619
March 202619
April 202616
May 202677
June 202652
July 202629
August 20260
September 20263
October 20260

Who asks, by party

The party each TD belonged to on the day, in alphabetical order. Parties differ a lot in size, and members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them, so this shows who raised it, not how much a party cares about it.

  • Aontú53 from 2 TDs · 2 seats today
  • Fianna Fáil16 from 7 TDs · 48 seats today
  • Fine Gael15 from 9 TDs · 38 seats today
  • Green Party16 from 1 TD · 1 seat today
  • Independent48 from 6 TDs · 15 seats today
  • Independent Ireland136 from 1 TD · 4 seats today
  • Labour Party24 from 3 TDs · 11 seats today
  • People Before Profit-Solidarity3 from 2 TDs · 3 seats today
  • Sinn Féin37 from 11 TDs · 39 seats today

The TDs who asked most

Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them. Each question counts once.

  1. 136
  2. 49
  3. 20
  4. 18
  5. 18
  6. 16
  7. 12
  8. 10

Asked of

Debated under the same heading

Debates whose official heading is exactly these words.

The questions

Roderic O'Gorman Written 14 Jan 2026 · to Children
147. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in care in each social work area, by local area office, in tabular form. [2774/26]
Roderic O'Gorman Written 14 Jan 2026 · to Children
148. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in care in each social work area with an allocated social worker, by local area office, in tabular form. [2775/26]
Roderic O'Gorman Written 14 Jan 2026 · to Children
149. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in care in each social work area awaiting an allocated social worker, by local area office, in tabular form. [2776/26]
Roderic O'Gorman Written 14 Jan 2026 · to Children
150. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality number of children in care under 12 years of-age in residential care by local area office, in tabular form. [2777/26]
Ruairí Ó Murchú Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1884. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the engagement there has been with the community and voluntary sector, which deals with referrals from Tusla, to expand capacity in that sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [74025/25]
Aisling Dempsey Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1898. Deputy Aisling Dempsey asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when the national policy of the rights of children living in informal kinship care will be published; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [74295/25]
Aisling Dempsey Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1899. Deputy Aisling Dempsey asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if all informal kinship care arrangements will be recognised in Ireland as they are internationally as a form of alternative care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [74296/25]
Aisling Dempsey Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1900. Deputy Aisling Dempsey asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if all formal kinship carers are paid the same allowances as foster carers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [74315/25]
Ken O'Flynn Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1908. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the longest period of time, in years, that any child has spent in State care since the establishment of Tusla in 2014; and to provide the year in which that duration was recorded, in aggregate form and without reference to any individual case. [74387/25]
Ken O'Flynn Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1909. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently in State care who have remained continuously in care for more than 10 years, more than 15 years, and more than 18 years respectively; and to outline how these figures have changed in each year since 2015. [74388/25]
Ken O'Flynn Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1910. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the statutory, regulatory, or administrative timeframes apply to permanency planning for children in long-term State care; and whether any mandatory escalation, review, or senior-level oversight is triggered once a child exceeds a defined duration in care. [74389/25]
Ken O'Flynn Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1912. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department has considered the introduction of statutory maximum periods within which a permanency decision must be made for a child in State care, subject to exceptional judicial review; and if not, to outline the policy rationale for the absence of such limits. [74391/25]
Sorca Clarke Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1938. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the supports in place for a young person in foster care through non family placement if they turn 18 while in 6th year and preparing for their Leaving Certificate; and the supports available to them from her Department to progress on to third level education. [74841/25]
Ciarán Ahern Written 13 Jan 2026 · to Children
1944. Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently awaiting accommodation in secure care units pursuant to court orders; the arrangements which have been made for these children in the interim; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [74951/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
5. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the steps her Department is taking to tackle the rate of exploitation by criminal gangs of children in the State care system; if she will meet with an advocacy group (details supplied) which is working to reduce child trafficking in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71834/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
35. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in State care or known to child protection services who died as a result of suspected foul play, homicide, murder and manslaughter in each of the past 15 years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71660/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
41. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children in State care who have died in the past fifteen years, by the breakdown of the cause of death; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71661/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
62. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children who have reported they were victims of human trafficking while in State care in each of the past five years. [71659/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
89. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of children currently missing from Tusla’s care; and the longest length of time any one child has been missing. [71657/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
91. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the total number of children who have been reported missing from Tusla’s care since the agency was founded; the number located; and the number whose whereabouts remains unknown. [71658/25]
Peadar Tóibín Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
597. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the current number of children in State care; and the steps her Department is taking to protect them from harm. [71835/25]
Thomas Gould Written 18 Dec 2025 · to Children
613. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether she is aware that an organisation (details supplied) in Cork will be closing mid-January; and whether she will intervene to keep this vital service open and expand its staffing to allow it to reach its full potential. [73402/25]
William Aird Written 16 Dec 2025 · to Children
873. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the safeguards currently in place to verify the age of asylum seekers presenting as unaccompanied minors; the reason almost 200 individuals placed in Tusla children’s accommodation since 2022 were subsequently found to be adults; the risk this poses to vulnerable children in State care; and whether she plans to introduce a more robust a…
William Aird Written 16 Dec 2025 · to Children
879. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of social workers currently working within the Tusla 'children-in-care' team in County Laois; the number of children placed with each of those social workers; the total number of social workers who have been employed in the Tusla children-in-care team in County Laois since 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter.…
Michael Healy-Rae Written 9 Dec 2025 · to Children
812. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 849 of 12 November 2025, the reason the response differs from Tusla (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [70264/25]