Private foster care is three times more expensive, figures show

Placing a child in private foster care costs an average of €58,000 per year, more than three times the amount individual foster carers receive, new figures show.

Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, last year paid €18.35 million to private foster care companies who source, vet and support foster carers.

Up to 316 children were being cared for by carers registered with these companies at any one time, averaging out at a cost of just over €58,000 per child.

The bulk of children in foster care – 5,616 at the end of last year – were with foster carers directly registered with the agency, and they were paid €100.6 million, averaging €17,900 per child.

Sourced directly

The allowance foster carers received – €325 for a child 12 or under and €352 for over 12s – was the same whether they were sourced through private companies or directly by Tusla.

Last year, nine private fostering companies received more than €18.35 million from Tusla between them. Fostering First Ireland Ltd got the largest payment, €6.68 million.

The UK-based company established a branch in Ireland 11 years ago after receiving requests for foster parents from the HSE, which then had responsibility for children in care.

Five Rivers Ireland Ltd was paid €5.15 million. It was set up in 2002. Its head office is in Dublin, and it employs 28 staff.

Orchard Children’s Services Ltd, also an Irish company, received €2.74 million. It has been in operation since 2003, based in Celbridge, Co Kildare.

The use of private foster care agencies has been increasing over the past few years. In 2014, €17.23 million was paid to them by Tusla.

And in its budget for 2016, the agency said it expected private costs to grow again.

Tusla has attributed an increase in the use of private companies to difficulties in placing children with relatives, a general shortage of suitable placements in some areas and an ongoing difficulty in recruiting new foster carers to keep up with demand.

Private companies say potential foster carers may be attracted to them because they have the resources to process their applications quicker, while there can be a lengthy waiting time to be accepted by Tusla.

They also say they offer more supports to foster carers, as well as high-quality training.

Private companies are also used by the agency for children requiring residential care, including care in specialist units outside the State.

Last year, €61.32 million was paid to 42 organisations for up to 181 children and young people, an average of almost €340,000 each.

Daffodil Care Services Ltd was paid €6.9 million. The Kilkenny-based company, with centres in Wexford, Dublin, Tipperary, Cork and Meath, opened its first unit in 2008.

Residential centres

Three Steps Private Services, based in Navan, Co Meath, was paid €6.86 million. MMC Children’s Services, based in Lifford, Co Donegal, and with residential centres in Louth, Wicklow, Westmeath, Cork and Limerick, received €6.39 million last year.

And Positive Care Ireland, with care homes in Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow and Cork, received €6.11 million.

A Tusla spokeswomanhas said in all care placements, the agency strives to ensure that children are placed in a setting which best meets their needs.

“Many private foster care placements include additional services to support the placement of the child including, for example, 24-hour support services and additional therapeutic services catering to children with higher levels of need,” she said.

“The cost of private placements also includes staffing support to foster carers.”

Tusla always seeks, in the first instance, to move the child into a statutory or voluntary residential care centre, she added.

“Private placements are not considered part of core residential care provision and are used only when a young person’s needs cannot be met within statutory and voluntary residential care centres.”

High Costs: What the service providers make

Fostering First Fostering First Ireland is an Irish subsidiary of the UK-based Core Assets Group, an international provider of children's services that made a pre-tax profit of £4.1 million last year, on a turnover of £168 million. Fostering First Ireland made a pre-tax profit of €702,000 on a turnover of €6.3 million.

Five Rivers Five Rivers Ireland , which has its registered office in Blanchardstown, is owned by director Pamela McConnell, of Wiltshire, England. The Irish company does not publish accounts as its liabilities are guaranteed by UK childcare group Midhurst Child Care, which is owned by Ms McConnell. Midhurst, which describes Five Rivers as a subsidiary, had a turnover of £22.7 million last year, and produced a pre-tax profit of £693,156. The accounts show that £18.3 million of the turnover came from the UK, with the rest – £4.38 million – coming from Five Rivers.

Orchard Orchard Children's Services, with an address in the M4 Business Park, Kildare, publishes abridged accounts that do not include a profit figure. At the end of 2015 its accumulated profits were €2.7 million. Orchard is owned by Canice Robinson, from Enfield, Co Meath, and Carol Lander, from Ilford, Essex, England. Both m are former directors of Five Rivers Ireland. They, and fellow Orchard director David Lander shared directors' emoluments of €330,696.

Daffodil Daffodil Care Services Ltd, with an address in Gorey, Co Wexford, is owned by Paul Carroll, from Rathgar, Dublin, and Pat Hayes, from Greystones, Co Wicklow. The abridged accounts for 2015 do not give a profit figure but show that the company's accumulated profits grew to €1.39 million, from €717,592 at the end of the previous year. The two shareholders are the company's directors and the accounts state that total directors' emoluments in 2015 were €612,851.

Three Steps Three Steps is an unlimited company, which means it is not obliged to file financial accounts. It is owned by two Isle of Man companies, Oatfield Holdings Ltd and Tullerboy. The latest annual return for Three Steps gives its directors as Dr Cathal McAuliffe and Dermot McDonnell, both of Castletown, Co Meath. Both men are also directors of the two Isle of Man companies. Since the filing of the return, Mr McDonnell has resigned as a director, and been replaced by Timothy Jolly, of Blackrock, Co Dublin.

MMC MMC Children's Services, with an address in Lifford, Co Donegal, is owned by Martin McCaul and Margaret McCaul, both of Movill, Co Donegal. The latest filed accounts are for 2014 and are abridged. No profit figure is given. Accumulated profits at year's end were €402,808, up from €393,967 a year earlier. The accounts say the company had 145 employees during the year, at a cost of €3.25 million.

Positive Care Positive Care Ireland Ltd, with an address in Mountjoy Square, Dublin, is owned by two Isle of Man companies, PCIsle, and Positive Care Isle Ltd, according to its latest annual return. Its directors are Una Marie Coyle, of Arklow, Co Wicklow, and Ann Pendergrast and Bernadette Manning, both with addresses on Mountjoy Square. All three are directors of a number of other companies. The latest filed accounts are for 2015, are abridged, and give no profit figure. Accumulated profits fell slightly, to €1,030,833, from €1,058,656 at the end of the previous year. The company had an average of 132 employees during the year, at a cost of €4.58 million. The directors' remuneration was €622,333. The accounts state that the three directors have equal shareholdings in the company.