This article from the Irish Times refers to a recent report from the Irish legislature (Oireachtas) which calls on the police (Garda) and social workers to form specialist child protection units to address gaps in services for out-of-hours social work services, and cites other recommendations from the Report on the Provision of Foster Care Services in Ireland. "That report highlighted gaps in Garda child protection training, a lack of inter-agency co-operation between gardaí and Tusla, and the continued inappropriate use of Garda stations as an 'immediate place of safety' for children removed from potentially harmful domestic circumstances," says the article.
