Details

The purpose of the scoping inquiry is to inform the government’s response to revelations of historical sexual abuse in day and boarding schools run by religious orders.

The inquiry report, due on 7 June 2024, will include an options review and analysis of previous inquiries, and an analysis of the potential scale of historical sexual abuse in schools run by religious orders in Ireland. It is hoped that the response framework it sets out can form a template for government responses elsewhere.

The Process
The inquiry is being informed by reports and inputs from experts across a range of areas including child protection, restorative justice and, most importantly, survivor engagement.

In the first stage of the process, survivors were invited to complete a questionnaire about their experience. The survivor engagement team has begun to make contact with those survivors who have indicated a wish to engage in the second stage of the process.

Related Inquiries
The critical analysis of previous inquiries and their outcomes is considering in particular the Ferns Report, the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, the Dublin Archdiocese Commission of Investigation (Murphy Report), and the Dublin Archdiocese Commission of Investigation (Cloyne Report).