A health board yesterday appealed for a good home for three children, all from the one family, who are in residential care.
The children - Alan (13), his sister Mary (11) and brother Sean (7) - are in the care of the East Coast Area Health Board, one of three health boards which has replaced the former Eastern Health Board.
Ms Jacinta Fitzgerald of the fostering resource group of the Eastern Regional Health Authority said the children had been living in a residential home for two years and were now asking to be allowed to grow up together in a family environment.
"What we would be looking for is a commitment from a family to bring them into adulthood and care for them until they are aged 18. The children have contact with their natural parents and that would have to continue," she said. The health board will maintain financial responsibility for the children.
A spokesperson for the East Coast Area Health Board stressed that a foster parent did not have to be married, own their own home or have a job. If you live in the Dublin/Wicklow area and feel able to offer them a home, call (01) 269 8222.