For immediate release
Monday, 14 October 2013

Press Release

Oberstown Redevelopment - A Major Step Forward for Vulnerable Children

Today the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs launched the construction of a new national children’s detention facility at Oberstown, County Dublin. This development deals with the long-standing issue of children being detained in adult prisons.

Welcoming the news, the Children’s Rights Alliance Chief Executive Tanya Ward said today that:

“The detention of young vulnerable boys in St Patrick’s Institution, a Victorian prison, has been a serious blot on Ireland’s human rights record. Often dubbed ‘the school of crime’, the Inspector of Prisons found as recently as 2012 that there was a culture in the prison that led to the rights of children being ignored or violated.

Ending the detention of children in St Pat’s is a major step forward for vulnerable children. The Government should be commended for following through on this commitment and securing €56.4 million to re-develop Oberstown in the midst of a recession. It just shows what can be achieved when children are placed at the heart of decision-making.”

ENDS