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Government approves proposals for new role of Special Advocate for Survivors of Institutional Abuse and publishes Collaborative Forum report

Statement by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman

  • a Special Advocate for Survivors can deliver a strong and sustained voice for all survivors of institutional abuse
  • once appointed, the Special Advocate will enhance processes for inclusive consultation and communication with survivors and their families
  • Minister O’Gorman publishes the Report of the Collaborative Forum and pays tribute to the enormous contribution of participants in the process

Government has today approved proposals from the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, to appoint a new Special Advocate for Survivors.

The proposal to appoint the Special Advocate originates in the Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions, which contains a number of measures designed to address broader experiences of institutional trauma. As such, Government has agreed that the role of the Special Advocate will be to ensure survivors’ views are central to the delivery of the State’s response to the legacy of institutional trauma in Mother and Baby or County Home institutions, Magdalen Laundries, Industrial Schools and Reformatories and related institutions.

This represents a new holistic and inclusive approach ensuring all survivors can be heard, and presents an opportunity to respond to the needs and concerns of these survivors in an equitable manner. This acknowledges the shared and unique elements of survivors' lived experience and the impact of those experiences on their needs today.

The fundamental importance and value of structured engagement with survivors has become increasingly evident in the past two years, with significant numbers of survivors and their families making contact with the State for the first time. The government recognises that dedicated structures and resources are needed to independently support and enhance such engagement.

Speaking today, Minister O’Gorman said:

“Since the publication of the Commission’s report, several hundred survivors have contacted my department, many of them for the first time. Notably, many do not identify as being a part of any established advocacy group, while some have formed new groups. The one thing they all have in common is a desire, and indeed a right, to contribute to this ongoing journey of reparation, support and healing. I believe this new model of engagement, through the Special Advocate for Survivors, can deliver a strong and sustained voice for all survivors.”

The Special Advocate for Survivors will manage and facilitate consultation with survivors, their families and supporters to identify and discuss issues of concern for them. The primary role of the Advocate will be to represent the collective interests of those who suffered institutional abuse so that their views inform the delivery of measures as set out in the government’s Action Plan.

The Special Advocate will be operationally independent of the department, and will be supported by an Advisory Council of survivors and a dedicated secretariat. This will ensure the Advocate’s work is informed by the lived experience and needs of those most centrally affected.

The appointment of the Special Advocate will be made by Minister O’Gorman following an independently-managed open recruitment process. Recruitment for the position will begin as quickly as possible.

Collaborative Forum Report

Today the Minister has also published the Report of the Collaborative Forum, fulfilling a longstanding commitment to its members. The purpose of the Forum was to enable survivors to identify, discuss and prioritise the issues of concern to them, and facilitate their active participation in recommending actions and solutions to address those concerns. In accordance with its Charter, the Collaborative Forum was an entirely separate process to that of the statutory Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes. The recommendations of the Forum were published in April 2019, however its full report could not be published while the matters it referred to were still under consideration by the Commission of Investigation. Publication of the Forum’s report now serves to contextualise its detailed recommendations.

The Forum’s substantial report is premised on the opinions and sincerely held views of Forum members in relation to their lived experiences, and makes a series of recommendations covering areas such as Identity and Information, Terminology, Health and Wellbeing, and Memorialisation.

Following the publication of the Final Report of the Commission of Investigation, and on foot of legal advices, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth engaged with organisations criticised in the report to ensure they had an opportunity to review relevant material and provide any observations which they deemed appropriate. Although this process has taken some time, the Minister is pleased that it has ultimately facilitated publication of the Forum’s report in full. The Minister met with the Forum earlier this year and he has written to members in recent days to advise them on arrangements for publication of their report.

Speaking on the Collaborative Forum and the Report’s publication, Minister O’Gorman said:

“I’d like to thank the members of the Collaborative Forum for their patience while we underwent the processes necessary to pub[internal-link null | null ]lish their full Report. I also wish to publicly acknowledge and pay tribute to the great efforts of all members of the Forum - the commitment to the process, demonstrated in their courageous sharing of traumatic experiences and resolute advocacy on behalf of all survivors, was invaluable.

“The recommendations made by the Collaborative Forum have directly influenced the important ongoing work of my department and others in seeking to address the priority concerns of survivors and their families. The achievement of Forum participants in representing the voices of survivors has had real value and meaningful impact in the context of the State’s response. It is my commitment, and that of the government, to continue to support facilitated engagement with survivors.”

Read the full report.

For more detailed information on how the recommendations of the Collaborative Forum have influenced the government response to date, please see the government’s Response Document.

Notes

When speaking about survivors of institutional trauma in the context of the Special Advocate, this includes persons who spent time in a Mother and Baby or County Home Institution, a Magdalen Laundry, Industrial School or Reformatory, or a related institution.

Functions of the Special Advocate

The functions of the Special Advocate will be to:

  • promote and represent the collective interests of persons who spent time in a Mother and Baby or County Home Institution, a Magdalen Laundry, Industrial School or Reformatory, or a related institution
  • engage with the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth in relation to implementation of the Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions
  • encourage service providers to provide accessible information on the services and supports available to survivors
  • provide opportunities for survivors to meet and share their lived experiences
  • provide feedback to survivors on how their views and interests have influenced policy and service delivery
  • report on the interests of former residents in relation to any specific issues or measures within the government Action Plan as soon as reasonably practicable after receiving a written request for such a report from the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
  • advise on developments in relation to State responses to comparable institutional experiences in other jurisdictions
  • provide an annual report to the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth on his or her activities and the full suite of consultations, engagements and processes undertaken in the particular year
  • contribute to an independent review of the role of the Special Advocate to be commissioned by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth every three years, if not sooner. The process must include an assessment of the continuing need for the services of a Special Advocate in the context of the implementation of State responses

In performing this role, the Special Advocate will:

  • proactively consult with relevant parties, and work in a participant-centred way which meets the needs of those who may wish to contribute
  • take reasonable steps to ensure survivors are made aware of her/his role and the ways in which they may communicate with the Special Advocate
  • ensure policies, procedures and practices are trauma-informed
  • working in conjunction with the State’s network of Embassies and consulates, to establish the views of survivors living outside the jurisdiction

The Special Advocate will not have a role to:

  • provide services or advocate directly on behalf of individuals
  • investigate institutions or the institutional experiences of individuals or complaints about services or providers (public or private)
  • provide legal advice or advise on individual cases
  • inspect or regulate the quality or delivery of services

Administrative support and Advisory Council

The Special Advocate will be supported in their work by a small administrative team, independent of the department, and by an Advisory Council of Survivors.

The Advisory Council will comprise of four pillars, each with three appointees, as follows:

  • a pillar representing women who were in Mother and Baby and County Home institutions or Magdalen Laundries as adults
  • a pillar representing men and women who were resident in Mother and Baby and County Home institutions or Magdalen Laundries as children and/or adopted or boarded out
  • a pillar representing men and women who spent time as children in Industrial Schools or Reformatories and related institutions
  • a pillar representing Irish Survivors Abroad

The members of the Council will be appointed by the Special Advocate following an independent selection of candidates from a public call for expressions of interest. Further information on this process will be available following the appointment of the Advocate.