An average of 546 children in HSE care did not have a social worker assigned to them in the year to November, figures prepared for the HSE's monthly performance reports show .
The number of children without a social worker fell from a high of 600 in October to 569 in November, meaning 91.2 per cent of all children in HSE care had a social worker assigned to them at that time.
However, this falls short of the HSE’s own target that 100 per cent of children in its care should have a social worker assigned to them. Regional figures from September show large variations in the level of children with allocated social workers.
In three HSE health office areas – Cavan/Monaghan, Kildare/West Wicklow and Tipperary North – more than a quarter of children had no assigned social worker in September.
In five local health offices – Galway and four areas in Dublin (southeast, northwest, north central and southwest) – the level of children with an assigned social worker was below 90 per cent.
Of the 34 local health offices nationwide, 10 recorded that all children in either residential or foster care had a social worker assigned to their case.
The chairwoman of the Irish Association of Social Workers Ineke Durville said it was important every child in the care of the HSE had an assigned social worker to ensure the child's needs were met, to act as the HSE's link between the child and parents and to support foster families. However, given staffing levels, "the task is huge" for social workers to provide comprehensive care to the 6,000-plus children in HSE care. She said social workers around the country were experiencing caseloads "way over and above" the norm in other jurisdictions as well as an "overwhelming amount of new referrals".
A spokesman for the Child and Family Agency said there were a number of circumstances in which such children could be temporarily without an allocated social worker.
These included those recently placed in care with an assessment of needs being carried out; those in short-term placements and children awaiting transfer to a new social worker.