A final conference of the European Union – Council of Europe joint project “Support the Implementation of Barnahus in Ireland” took place in Dublin on 29 January 2025. The event gathered key stakeholders to showcase project’s main achievements and reflect on next steps in implementing the Barnahus model* in the country across three key areas: legal and policy framework, capacity-building and interagency cooperation, and awareness raising and communication.
The conference was opened by Kevin McCarthy, Secretary General of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) of Ireland. He emphasised that “the implementation of the Barnahus model is key to Ireland’s need to minimise the child’s trauma during the assessment of the suspected abuse and the follow up actions and strengthening its interagency response to child sex abuse in line with the Lanzarote Convention.” The Secretary General further highlighted that the Council of Europe’s expertise provided during the project was instrument in the progress of Barnahus in Ireland.
Protecting and promoting the rights of the child, including combating violence against children and ensuring child-friendly justice, are shared values and core objectives of both the Council of Europe and the European Union. “Our Technical Support Instrument project in Ireland exemplifies how European collaboration can drive meaningful reform, delivering tangible benefits for our youngest and most vulnerable citizens—children who have suffered sexual abuse. I am proud that the progress we’ve made has been recognised by the incoming Irish government, which has included the expansion of Barnahus in its agenda”, noted Nathalie Berger, Director for Support to Member States’ Reforms, DG REFORM, European Commission, in her opening remarks.
Commending Ireland for its achievements and the progress in implementing the Barnahus model, Roberto Olla, Head of Human Dignity and Gender Equality Department of the Council of Europe, underlined that “with Phase II of the project pre-selected by DG-REFORM, the Council of Europe stands ready to continue supporting Ireland, following up on the key developments of Phase I”.
Matthew McVarish, co-founder of the Brave Movement and its representative to the Lanzarote Committee (Committee of the Parties to the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse), delivered a powerful keynote speech, highlighting the importance of a child- and survivor-centred approach in handling and addresing child sexual abuse cases.
An update on the progress of Barnahus Ireland, highlighting developments at the sites in Galway (West), Cork (South), and Dublin (East) was provided by the representatives of DCEDIY, alongside managers from each of the regional sites.
Over the past of 3 years, the project has contributed to improving the legislative and policy framework for implementing the Barnahus model in Ireland, while also strengthening capacities of professionals working with children and enhancing awareness raising and communication. Key outcomes presented at the conference included the Strategy and Action Plan for scaling up Barnahus in the country, training materials on trauma-informed care, Communication Strategy and Action Plan, visual identity, and the Barnahus national website developed by the project.
Stakeholders and experts, including children who actively contributed to the development of visibility materials, provided valuable insights during the event.
The conference generated momentum to reaffirm Ireland’s commitment to continue implementing and expanding the Barnahus model nationally and strengthen measures aimed at preventing violence against children.
The day before, study visits were organised to the Barnahus centres in Galway (Barnahus West) and Dublin (Barnahus East), which will become operational in 2025. These visits provided participants with the opportunity to gain a closer understanding of how child victims of sexual abuse are accessing services, including justice, therapy, medical care, and child protection support.
* The Barnahus (Children’s House in Icelandic) is the leading European response model to child sexual abuse aimed at coordinating parallel criminal and child welfare investigations, with all relevant services under one roof, to prevent secondary victimisation of children.
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