By Maresa Fegan: The Detail

DOZENS of teenagers in the care of the state are being placed in unregulated accommodation in Northern Ireland, The Detail can reveal.

More than 70 young people, aged 16-17 years, were placed in unregulated bed and breakfasts, hotels, hostels, and other supported accommodation across Northern Ireland in 2017/18 because of service pressures on health and social care trusts and a rise in youths presenting as homeless.

The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA), which is responsible for inspecting and monitoring children’s care homes and accommodation, said the practice of using unregulated accommodation could place youths at risk.

The Western trust had the highest number of unregulated placements with 29 young people in adhoc placements, followed by the Northern trust (15), Belfast trust (11), Southern trust (8), and South Eastern trust (6), as the following graph shows.

(CHART)

The figures come as the number of children in care in Northern Ireland reached record levels in 2018 when 3,109 children were in care as of 31 March 2018. This was the highest number recorded since the introduction of the Children Order 1995.

In light of the number of unregulated placements RQIA inspected three unregistered accommodation providers in Belfast and Ballymena last year. One young ‘looked after’ teenager was found in unregulated supported accommodation at the time of inspection.

RQIA board chair Professor Mary McColgan told the board in November that the “problematic situation” was “verging on crisis”.

The regulator said responsibility for placing children and youths in accommodation lay with health and social care trusts and the Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) but conceded that the use of unregulated accommodation left it in a “compromised position”.

As it stands, RQIA cannot take enforcement action against or prosecute accommodation providers that are not registered with the watchdog.

The regulator raised the governance gap with the Department of Health in January when it reported a rising trend in the use of unregulated accommodation for ‘looked after’ youths.

Figures furnished by the HSCB to RQIA last year found 76 youths were placed in 135 unregulated placements across Northern Ireland between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2018.

The use of unregulated placements was more prevalent in the Western, Northern, and Belfast trusts, which had a higher number of youths in care.

A further breakdown of figures found that placements in B&Bs tripled from 13 in 2014/15 to 39 in 2017/18, with the majority of placements in the Northern, Belfast, and Western trusts.

The number of youths placed in hotels also increased almost four-fold from five in 2014/15 to 19 in 2017/18, primarily in the Northern and Western trusts.

The regulator stated in its report: “RQIA has no regulations to address any breaches in these services and raises any concerns with HSCB and trusts. Trusts however continue to make bespoke arrangements, use relatives and friends, supported lodgings and bed and breakfasts.”