IRISH YOUTH JUSTICE SERVICE CONFERENCE:CHILDREN'S RIGHTS campaigners have welcomed a Government announcement to build a new national child detention facility for young offenders which will finally remove children from the adult prison system.
However, they have expressed concern that teenage offenders may end up being placed in the new Thornton Hall adult prison on a temporary basis if the national child detention facility is not completed on time.
Minister for Children Brendan Smith said yesterday that planning will begin immediately for a new 167-bed complex in Lusk, Co Dublin, which will cater for all children who are ordered to be detained by the courts.
At present, young offenders under16 are detained across a number of child detention facilities, while 16 to 17-year-old teenagers are placed in St Patrick's Institution and other adult prisons. This practice has been heavily criticised by the United Nations and non-governmental organisations for being in breach of children's rights.
Mr Smith said he hoped the new facility could be built by 2012.
However, he confirmed that Thornton Hall could be used "as a measure of last resort" if the facility is not built on time.
Speaking at the Irish Youth Justice Service conference in Cavan, he said: "The new facilities in Lusk will replace existing outdated detention schools and will provide modern, safe and secure accommodation which will be as advanced as anywhere in the world."
Mr Smith said the first phase of construction will focus on places for young offenders aged between 16 and 17. Health, education and justice services will work together in the new complex to help to support children to turn away from crime and re-integrate them into their communities, he added.
Yesterday's announcement was broadly welcomed by children's rights groups and the Irish Penal Reform Trust, but the lack of clarity over whether Thornton Hall will be used for children drew sharp criticism.
The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice said the new facility should mean that children will be detained in a more positive environment that recognises their potential for development.
But the centre's director, Fr Tony O'Riordan, called for a commitment that Thornton Hall would not be used to accommodate young offenders. He also called on the Minister to put in place a plan to transform the outdated regime in St Patrick's Institution to ensure young offenders had a better chance of developing and being rehabilitated.
The Children's Rights Alliance, a coalition of 80 non-governmental organisations, also welcomed the plans but said it was "bitterly disappointed" that the Government had failed to take the opportunity to abandon its plans to temporarily detain children in Thornton Hall.
"Common sense must prevail and money should not be wasted on a temporary, redundant facility within an adult complex," she said.
Privately, Government sources say they are optimistic Thornton Hall will not be used for under-18s given that they do not anticipate planning obstacles for the facility at Lusk. This is because the land is State-owned and already hosts a number of child detention schools.
An assessment centre in Finglas - the Finglas Child and Adolescent Centre - will also be relocated to the new centre. The Minister said he will establish a working group to examine possible future uses of the site for children in Finglas.
Siptu, which represents many of the staff at the facility, says it vital the building should retain its use in helping vulnerable children.
