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S.I. No. 312/2020 - Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) (Emergency Measures in the Public Interest - Covid-19) (Amendment) (No. 1) Regulations 2020

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 21st August, 2020.

I, Roderic O’Gorman, Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 39 (as amended by section 75 of the Health Act 2004 (No. 42 of 2004)) and 68 of the Child Care Act 1991 (No. 17 of 1991) and the Child Care (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2011 ( S.I. No. 488 of 2011 ), hereby make the following regulations:

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) (Emergency Measures in the Public Interest - Covid-19) (Amendment) (No. 1) Regulations 2020.

(2) The Principal Regulations and these Regulations may be cited together as the Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) Regulations 1995 and 2020 and shall be construed together as one.

2. In these Regulations:

“Principal Regulations” means the Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) Regulations 1995 ( S.I. No. 260 of 1995 ).

3. The Principal Regulations are amended in the definition of “Emergency period” (as inserted by Regulation 3 of the Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) (Emergency Measures in the Public Interest - Covid-19) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 ( S.I No. 170 of 2020 )) by substituting “period of six months” for “period of three months”.

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GIVEN under my Official Seal,

19 August, 2020.

RODERIC O’GORMAN,

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These Regulations extend, for an additional 3 months, amendments to the Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) Regulations 1995 to provide for the suspension of normal foster care approval processes, having regard to the obligations and restrictions required by the State for the safeguarding of public health, and to allow for the introduction, on a temporary basis of a more flexible approval process. These Regulations continue to effect the suspension of the statutory time-periods for the visiting of children in foster care and allow for visits to take place, in accordance with all public health notifications and obligations. In addition, contact must be maintained, outside of visits, by the Child and Family Agency with children in foster care, in accordance with the frequency set out previously in Regulations.

These Regulations may be cited as the Child Care (Placement of Children in Foster Care) (Emergency Measures in the Public Interest - Covid-19) (Amendment) (No. 1) Regulations 2020.