Kathleen Funchion: Focus on Children in Direct Provision Reform
Kathleen Funchion welcomed the white paper on ending direct provision and its recommendation to adopt a human rights-based approach. She focused on the experiences of children and young people in the system and urged the government to work with young people to build a system that reduces waiting times and anxiety.
Focus on children and young people
Funchion emphasised the particular difficulties facing children and young people in direct provision, noting many have been isolated from their communities, left in a state of limbo and in some cases spend their entire childhoods in the system.
Education and financial barriers
She described cases where young people nearing third level education are effectively cut out by the current financial situation, with long periods in direct provision damaging educational progression and opportunity.
Young people’s voices and engagement
Funchion highlighted that many young people living in direct provision have used their voices to raise serious faults with the system. She stressed they are engaged and want to be involved in the conversation about reform.
Waiting times, accommodation and mental health
She called for a system that makes a real effort to reduce waiting times and said allowing people to languish in cramped, inappropriate accommodation is unacceptable. The delays in processing families have an enormous impact on children and young people’s mental health, and any new reception centres must lessen the anxiety and instability children face, particularly on arrival.
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I welcome, like my colleagues have, the white paper on ending the direct provision and the steps that need to be taken and particularly the recommendations on taking a human rights-based approach. I am going to mainly focus my comments on the perspective of children and young people in the direct provision system. It has been particularly difficult. They have been very much isolated from their communities and many have been left in a state of limbo in some way. cases for their entire childhoods. I always think some of the most difficult representations we get is when there is a possibility of somebody moving on to third level education and they have spent a huge portion of their young life in direct provision and then maybe are cut out of third level due to the financial situation that exists currently with that. There are many young people living in direct provision that have used their voices to raise the serious faults with the system. They are engaged and want to be involved in the conversation. I think it is really important that the government works with young people to build a system that works for them. We need to build a system that makes a real effort to reduce waiting times, allowing people to languish in cramped and inappropriate accommodation is unacceptable. The delays in processing families has an enormous impact on children and young people's mental health and any new reception centres must lessen the anxiety and instability that many children face on their journey to Ireland, particularly when they first arrive.
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