Tusla facing ‘serious challenges’ on social worker recruitment

Bernard Gloster, chief executive of Tusla, will tell the Public Accounts Committee of staffing issues after a Hiqa report identified a shortage of social workers in the agency

Bernard Gloster, the Tusla chief executive, has said recruitment of social workers is a ‘serious challenge’ for the agency. Picture: Alan Place

The state’s child and family agency is facing “serious challenges” when it comes to hiring and retaining social workers.

Bernard Gloster, Tusla’s chief executive, will tomorrow tell the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee of a “critical need” to assess the use of “multi-disciplinary teams” for child protection work as opposed to using social workers hired specifically for that purpose.

It follows a number of reports on staffing shortages at the child and family agency, which employs ...