Toxic masculinity is an “emerging trend” among male youths in the Oberstown Children Detention Campus, according to its annual report.
The north Co Dublin facility and its staff experienced a “testing time” last year, with several high-profile incidents recorded, it says.
Oberstown last year had capacity to detain 46 children – 40 boys and six girls, with the number gradually increased to address demand for additional capacity. .
A total of 119 young people were cared for on the campus last year, with management noting the “remarkable” level of progress made. Six Junior Cycle examinations were completed and there was growth in programme delivery and creative projects.
RM Block
In his comments in the report, Oberstown director Damien Hernon warned that “toxic masculinity is an emerging trend” at the child detention centre. Oberstown is developing sessions examining the impact of online influencers on those detained at the campus, with an “emphasis on young people’s identity as well as sexual violence prevention”.
A series of courses examining sexual consent, “harmful online behaviour”, relationships, “masculinity and what it means to be a man”, and abusive behaviour were delivered to a number of young people at the centre last year.
The report notes several violent incidents that happened at the campus last year. Nine staff members were injured in an incident involving one young person in early June. A series of separate incidents saw at least three others left requiring hospital treatment.
Staff were said to be left feeling “unsettled” by media coverage of the incidents.
“We faced a testing time through incidents involving some young people with extremely complex and significant behavioural challenges,” Hernon said, adding that the “resilience” and professionalism of staff should be commended.
Describing the period as a “challenging” and “testing time”, he said the “isolated incidents were the subject of some erroneous and sensationalist media coverage which was very unsettling for our staff team and for the wider Oberstown community”.
Hernon said a “remarkable” level of progress was made against a backdrop of increased demand for the detention centre’s services, increased occupancy, legislative challenges and a “very difficult recruitment environment”.
Koulla Yiasouma, chair of the Oberstown board, said a doubling in the number of days when the campus was at maximum male occupancy posed a “major challenge”.
“Recruitment challenges are likely to be a constant feature of the campus for some time,” she said.
Staffing levels were among the issues raised by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) in an inspection of the facility late last year. Hiqa said staffing levels were, at times, too low to provide safe cover and that some children had been locked in bedrooms for long periods at weekends due to “critically low staffing levels”.
Yiasouma said the Hiqa report reflected the “impact of the pressures on Oberstown” when it came to staffing and capacity, with “areas of improvement identified”.
Oberstown was found to be “not compliant” in two areas in the Hiqa report, but its management said a plan is in place to address these issues including addressing “persistent staffing shortages”. There were 264 people employed at the campus at the end of last year, with 41 new people starting to work at Oberstown.
Minister for Children, Disability and Equality Norma Foley welcomed the publication of the report, noting that an extra €2.2 million in funding had been allocated for this year to address staffing issues.
