Policy and Guidance  |  View all the guidance 

The National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland (registered as Coimirce) is a company limited by guarantee and not having a share capital. It was incorporated in 2008 and its founding members comprise of the Archbishops and the Episcopal Secretary of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference, together with the Director General of the Conference of Religious of Ireland (CORI), a nominee of the executive of CORI, the Executive Secretary of the Irish Missionary Union (IMU) a nominee of the Executive Board of the IMU.

The main object of the company is to provide advice, services and assistance in the furtherance of the development of the safeguarding of children within the Roman Catholic Church on the island of Ireland and to monitor compliance with legislation, policy and best practice and to report on these activities annually, all as comprehensively set out in the Memorandum and Articles of Association.

The National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland is funded through the Sponsoring Bodies:

• The Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference

• Association of Leaders of Missionaries and Religious of Ireland (AMRI)

The Prelature of Opus Dei in Ireland committed to abide by the standards and policies of the NBSCCI in a Memorandum of Understanding dated 2nd June 2009.

NBSCCCI POLICY UPDATE 

• During 2023 and early 2024 the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland (NBSCCCI) concluded the revision of the Irish Church's Safeguarding Children Policy and Standards, 2016. 

• The reframed Policy, entitled "A Safe and Welcoming Church: Safeguarding Children Policy and Standards for the Catholic Church in Ireland, 2024", and its associated Guidance have now been approved by the Irish Episcopal Conference and came into effect from 11th June 2024. 

NBSCCCI 2024 Policy & Standards | Table of Contents 

NBSCCCI 2016 Policy & Standards | Table of Contents cross-referenced to 2024 Policy

The NBSCCCI Policy is integrated into the Local Safeguarding Policy for Ireland (LSP-I) and - as a Church Authority responsible for activities with minors on the island of Ireland - the Prelature has committed to implementing the revised policy from its inception, in accordance with its Memorandum of Understanding with the NBSCCCI.

Links on this website to the previous NBSCCCI Safeguarding Policy and Guidance are currently being updated to point to and reflect the new guidance (see cross-reference index for equivalences) and the corresponding text in LSP-I on this website is also being updated. This process will take some time to complete and your patience in this regard is appreciated.

Police (RoI)

Gardaí National Protective Services Bureau (GNPSB)

Detective Superintendent

Garda National Protective Services Bureau (National Child Protection Unit)

Harcourt Square, 

Dublin 2, D02 DH42

Guide: Information leaflet

Web: GNPSB Portal

Tel.: +353 1 666 3430, +353 1 666 3435

Email: gnpsb_scmu@garda.ie

Social Services (RoI)

Tusla Child and Family Agency

TUSLA is the statutory Child and Family Agency for the Republic of Ireland. 

The Children First public policy in Ireland relates to

• the recognition of child abuse and neglect,

• the reporting of same to Tusla, and

• the guidance and best practice which organisations should adhere to, to keep children safe while availing of their services.

Excerpt from the Tusla website:-

TUSLA - The Child and Family Agency, has a primary responsibility to promote the safety and well-being of children. An Garda Síochána also have statutory responsibilities for the safety and welfare of children.

Everyone must be alert to the possibility that children with whom they are in contact may be suffering from abuse or neglect. This responsibility is particularly relevant for professionals such as teachers, child care workers, health professionals and those working with adults with serious parenting difficulties. It is also an important responsibility for staff and people involved in sports clubs, community activities, youth clubs, religious/faith sector and other organisations catering for children.

The Agency should always be informed when a person has reasonable grounds for concern that a child may have been, is being or is at risk of being abused or neglected.

Child protection concerns should be supported by evidence that indicates the possibility of abuse or neglect.

A concern about a potential risk to children posed by a specific person, even if the children are unidentifiable, should also be communicated to the Agency.

The guiding principles in regard to reporting child abuse or neglect may be summarised as follows:

• the safety and well-being of the child must take priority;

• reports should be made without delay to the Agency.

Retrospective Allegations

Excerpt from the Tusla website:-

If you are a mandated person, you will have to establish whether there are reasonable grounds to suspect that a person who is currently a child has been, is being, or is at risk of being harmed. 

If you conclude that there is no current or future risk to children, you are not obliged to submit a mandated report to Tusla under section 14(1) (a) of the Children First Act 2015 in relation to the childhood abuse of a now adult.

Tusla Portal

The Tusla Portal allows users to securely submit Child Protection and Welfare Report Forms (CPWRFs) and Retrospective Abuse Report Forms (RARFs) to Tusla online. To use the Tusla Portal, you will first need to create a user account. Assistance with registering and logging on is available here . A short user guide is also available here to assist you. After you complete and submit your Report on the Tusla Portal you can then print a copy for your own records.

Contact Details

Agency: Tusla Child and Family Agency

Floors 2-5, Brunel Building

Heuston South Quarter

Dublin 8 

Telephone: +353 1 771 8500 

E-mail: info@tusla.ie 

Reporting: Mandated Persons or Others

Forms: Current or Retrospective reports to be delivered by hand or registered post, unless reported via Tusla Portal

Web: Tusla (Child Protection & Welfare)

Guidance: Children First National Guidance 2017

Training: Children First e-learning programme

Vulnerable Adults (RoI)

Safeguarding Ireland

Reporting Concerns: https://safeguardingireland.org/reporting/

Resources: https://safeguardingireland.org/resources/

Policy Development: https://safeguardingireland.org/

Law Reform: https://www.lawreform.ie/_fileupload/Reports/as/executive-summary-lrc-es-128.pdf

Cross-Border issues

See the Protocol Between Northern Ireland and Ireland for Handling Inter-Jurisdictional Child Cases

Police (NI)

Anyone with an immediate concern about the safety or welfare of a child or young person in Northern Ireland should contact the PSNI without delay so that an emergency protective response can be made. 

A referral may also be made directly to the PSNI where a crime is alleged or suspected. Report the matter directly to the PSNI Central Referral Unit on 101, and you will be put in contact with a specially trained police officer who will speak to you confidentially. 

In an emergency situation dial the police emergency number 999.

Current Contact Details (cf. Down & Connor Safeguarding Office for additional resources)

Social Services (NI)

Health and Social Care Trust (HSCT) - Local Social Services Gateway Teams 

Anyone with a concern about the safety or welfare of a child or young person in circumstances other than an emergency should contact the Single Point of Entry Team in the relevant HSCT Gateway Service (Mon-Fri: 9.00am-5.00pm) during normal working hours. This includes parents or family members seeking help, concerned friends and neighbours, professionals and individuals from statutory or voluntary organisations. Even where individuals are unsure about whether a concern needs to be referred, they can contact the HSCT to obtain advice. Referrals outside normal working hours should be made to the Regional Emergency Social Work Service (RESWS). 

Contact details during normal  hours (Mon-Fri: 9.00am-5.00pm) are as follows:

Belfast HSC Trust +44 28 9050 7000

South Eastern HSC Trust +44 300 1000 300

Northern HSC Trust +44 300 1234 333

Southern HSC Trust +44 28 3756 7100 / Freephone: +44 800 7837 745

Western HSC Trust +44 28 7131 4090

Outside normal working hours and in an emergency (Friday 5.00pm – Monday 9.00am, including Bank holidays):

Regional Emergency Social Work Service +44 28 9504 9999 

e-mail: resws1@belfasttrust.hscni.net  

Where an allegation of child abuse is made, by any person, or, where grounds exist to suspect that a child is being abused, the referring professional should not in these circumstances be conducting further enquiries or passing information to other parties until after the outcome of the joint assessment between HSCT and the PSNI has been completed in accordance with the Joint Protocol or other relevant policy and procedures. Any subsequent action taken under the Joint Protocol should be taken in liaison with the PSNI.

Staff and volunteers in organisations should follow their own internal policy and procedures in raising a concern or making a referral about the safety or welfare of a child or young person to a HSCT. Statutory and voluntary organisations must keep a record of all discussions to ensure that all relevant information is provided through an appropriate shared response to the HSCT.  

Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland (SBNI)

The Beeches

12 Hampton Manor Drive

Belfast BT7 3EN

United Kingdom

Telephone: +44 28 95 361810

Email: SBNI.Info@hscni.net

Web: SBNI Portal

Manual: SBNI Manual

AccessNI 

P.O. Box 1085

Belfast, BT5 9BD

United Kingdom

Telephone: +44 300 200 7888

Email: ani@accessni.gov.uk

accessni-compliance@accessni.gov.uk

Web: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/campaigns/accessni-criminal-record-checks