4,228 entries for Historical Context

One hundred and eleven (111) admissions (16%) of 107 male and four female witnesses were under sections of the Children Act, 1908 that refer to offenders.Twenty five (25) of these admissions were of witnesses who were charged with offences when they were less than 12 years old and a further 41 were of witnesses who were aged between 12 and 14 years.

Fifty six (56) witnesses, all except one of whom were male, were admitted to the School system under section 17(4) of the School Attendance Act, 1926. This Act and its amendments were applied to children who failed to attend school and were younger than the official school leaving age of 14 years. School Attendance Officers and gardaí generally initiated Court proceedings in these circumstances.

Many witnesses who gave evidence to the Committee reported being angry that the wording of their Court Order appeared to ‘criminalise’ them for reasons such as ‘found not having any home or settled place of abode, or visible means of subsistence, or having a parent or guardian who does not exercise proper guardianship’.5 The absurdity of an infant being charged with ‘receiving alms’ was remarked upon. 6

The following information refers to what was known regarding witnesses’ age when they were first admitted to any form of care outside their own family. Many witnesses were admitted to Schools from other institutions where they may have resided from birth or early childhood. The age of first admission to out-of-home care for both male and female witnesses is shown in Table 13:

Age at first admission	Males	%	Females	%	Total witnesses	%
0–5 years	133	32	244	65	377	48
6–10 years	119	29	99	26	218	28
11–15 years	144	35	35	9	179	23
16–17 years	17	4	0	0	17	2
Total	413	100	378	100	791	(100)*

The marked difference in the age profile of witnesses’ admission to out-of-home care is demonstrated in this table. One hundred and thirty three (133) male witnesses (32%) compared with 244 female witnesses (65%) were admitted to out-of-home care in their first five years of life and 61% of male witnesses compared to 91% of female witnesses reported being placed in out-of-home care by the age of 10 years. Finally, 161 male witnesses (35%) were first admitted to care at age 11 years or older, compared with 35 female witnesses (9%).

It can be observed from information provided by witnesses that the length of stay in out-of-home care varied depending on a number of factors including their age at the time of admission and the particular reasons for their admission. As shown in Table 13, most female witnesses were admitted at a young age and spent longer periods of time in institutions. By contrast, a higher percentage of male witnesses (39%) than female (9%) were admitted over the age of 10 years and were discharged within six years.

The majority of witnesses were in care for more than six years. The average length of stay for male witnesses was seven and a half years and the average length of stay for female witnesses was 11 years. Table 14 below shows the length of stay in out-of-home care for both male and female witnesses:

Length of stay in care	Males	%	Females	%	Total witnesses	%
0–5 years	181	44	53	14	234	30
6–10 years	109	26	103	27	212	27
11–15 years	99	24	181	48	280	35
16+ years	24	6	41	11	65	8
Total	413	100	378	100	791	100

As the table shows, 345 witnesses (44%), 123 male (30%) and 222 female (59%), were in out-of-home care for more than 10 years. Two hundred and thirty four (234) witnesses (30%), 181 male and 53 female, were in out-of-home care for five years or less.

Witnesses admitted to Schools for committing an offence under sections 57(1) and 58(3) of the Children Act, 1908 were generally admitted at a later age and for a briefer and defined period of time than those admitted under section 58(1)(b). For the female witnesses brief admissions to Schools were an unusual experience and in most instances reflected admissions at a later age in the context of a family crisis or an offence.

Four hundred and eleven (411) of the 791 witnesses (52%), 198 male and 213 female, were discharged from the Schools when they were 16 years of age or older. With the exception of admission to Reformatory Schools, it was most often reported that court-ordered admissions were until the witness was 16 years rather than for a specified number of years. Seventy five (75) witnesses were discharged before their 14th birthday, 30 of whom were male and 45 female. Table 15 shows the age of discharge for both male and female witnesses.

Age when discharged	Males	%	Females	%	Total witnesses	%
<10 years	3	1	11	3	14	2
10–13 years	27	7	34	9	61	8
14–16 years	315	76	243	64	558	71
17+ years	68	16	90	24	158	20
Total	413	100	378	100	791	(100)*

Five hundred and fifty eight (558) witnesses (71%) left the School system between the ages of 14 and 16 years. Of those, 319 witnesses (40%), 130 male (31%) and 189 female (50%), reported being discharged when they were 16 years old. A further 158 witnesses (20%) were discharged up to 10 years later. Forty eight (48) of those witnesses, six male and 42 female, reported being kept on to work either within the School or for an individual or a service associated with the School.

Sixty nine (69) witnesses, 19 male and 50 female, who remained in the School system after their 16th birthday, had been in institutional care since they were aged three years or younger and were regarded as orphans, having no known family contact. Thirty eight (38) male witnesses who were discharged over the age of 16 years were admitted under Court Orders that permitted their detention until they were 18 years old. Sixteen (16) witnesses, eight male and eight female, remained residents in the School after their 16th birthday to continue secondary education.7

The next five chapters of the Report summarise the evidence provided by witnesses regarding family contact, everyday experiences and abuse while in the Schools.

This chapter presents a range of information provided in relation to witnesses’ families, including witnesses designated as ‘orphans’ who in fact had living parents. The extent of information provided by witnesses to the Committee about family contact was determined by numerous factors, particularly the availability of family information to the witnesses themselves. In most instances where family information was available, witnesses generally reported having siblings or relatives and that they lived at home or with extended family for some time prior to their admission to out-of-home care.1

Witnesses who had been in care since birth were too young at the time to recall what happened to them. ‘I don’t know why I was there, where I was before, who sent me there ... no idea what happened.’ Others were unclear about the detail of their family circumstances but remembered being admitted to out-of-home care with their brothers and sisters and at times being visited by relatives. A number of these witnesses learned subsequently that they had lived with their parents and/or relatives for some time before being admitted to care, but had no sense of being part of a family network while they were in the School system. Many other witnesses had clear memories of living with their parents or with their relatives before their admission and maintained contact with their family throughout their time in institutional care.