St. Clare’s Unit is a safe, child-centred service. We know this can be an anxious time for you and your family. You will receive a letter informing you of your first appointment with us, but if you have questions before this first appointment, please feel free to call us beforehand with any questions or concerns you might have.

At your first appointment two members of staff will meet with you. These staff members will be the allocated clinicians who will complete the assessment with your family. This first appointment is generally for parents or carers only, and it is important to see both parents/carers where possible. We will accommodate each family circumstance and can meet with parents together or separately.

We will be talking to you about the child/young person's early years and gaining a wider picture of your family’s life, as well as the current concern. At this appointment, we will collaboratively decide if it is appropriate to meet with the child/young person, and we will arrange this appointment. You will also be given advice on how to prepare the child/young person for their visit.

The first appointment with the child/young person generally lasts around an hour. Depending on the age of the child/young person, we have toys and art materials to use while they are talking during the assessment.

Older children and teenagers often prefer just to talk. This can be explained further when we meet with you. Parents/carers may be offered a second appointment if more time is needed.

No, only the clinicians completing the assessment with your child will be in the interview room. This is to reduce the possible stress that might be placed on the child/young person and to provide a neutral setting for them to talk. Another clinician who is on the assessment team will be observing the assessment from an observation room. It is not possible for parents to observe the interview. After meeting with the child/young person, we meet with you to offer brief feedback on how the child/young person engaged in the interview. It can be advisable to bring an extra person to this appointment for support and to sit with your child in the waiting room when we are giving feedback to you.

This depends on the child/young person and family, but usually, service users attend between 2 and 4 times.

When an assessment is completed, the assessment team will write a report which will be provided to the referring Tusla social worker. The assessment team will provide an opinion regarding the concern of sexual abuse and make recommendations on how best to support the child and family, and perhaps a referral will be made to St. Clare’s Unit therapy service or an external service.

Due to the sensitive and confidential nature of the information contained in the reports completed in St. Clare’s Unit, copies will not be provided to the parents/carers. You can, however, access these reports in the Unit and are welcome to come and read the report in St. Clare’s Unit when it is ready.

No, only the clinicians completing the assessment with the child/young person will be in the interview room. This is to reduce the possible stress that might be placed on the child/young person and to provide a neutral setting for them to talk. Another clinician who is on the assessment team will be observing the assessment from an observation room. It is not possible for parents to observe the interview. After meeting with the child/young person, we meet with you to offer brief feedback on how the child/young person,engaged in the interview. It can be advisable to bring an extra person to this appointment for support and to sit with the child/young person in the waiting room when we are giving feedback to you.