HSE left girl with foster family to be raped again
■ Three young victims suffered abuse while aged under 10 years
A YOUNG girl repeatedly raped within a foster family setting remained in their care for a further four years despite “credible” disclosures of abuse.
Serious questions have arisen about foster care services, and the HSE was forced to apologise “unreservedly” after the rape of three young girls.
Last night, a brave survivor of the horrific child sexual abuse spoke about the devastating impact it has had on her, saying “it’s not a life, I’m doing the prison sentence”.
Rachel Barry was raped by Keith Burke (29), of Addergoolemore, Dunmore, Co Galway, at a foster home when she was just nine years old.
Ms Barry waived her right to anonymity so Burke could be publicly named, and to outline the toll the abuse had on her.
Speaking on ‘RTÉ Investigates’, she said: “He took my virginity away from me at nine – it’s sickening because I can never get that back.”
She also told how she was forced to watch as Burke had sex with another young girl, given the pseudonym ‘Amy’. At the age of 11, she plucked up the courage to tell her biological mother what was happening and an investigation was launched.
But two months after the disclosure, the HSE decided Amy and another young boy being fostered were not to be removed from the foster home, according to documents seen by RTÉ.
Burke continued to have unsupervised access to the children after 2007, even though he had by then moved out of the family home.
It later emerged another girl given the pseudonym ‘Sarah’ was regularly raped by Burke and also witnessed the rape of Amy.
A YOUNG girl repeatedly raped within a foster family setting remained in their care for a further four years despite “credible” disclosures of abuse.
Serious questions have arisen about standards within foster care services and the HSE was forced to apologise “unreservedly” after the rape of three young girls.
Last night, a brave survivor of the horrific child sexual abuse spoke about the devastating impact it has had on her, saying “it’s not a life, I’m doing the prison sentence”.
Rachel Barry was raped by Keith Burke (29), of Addergoolemore, Dunmore, Co Galway, at a foster home when she was just nine years old.
Ms Barry waived her right to anonymity so Burke could be publicly named and to outline the toll the abuse had on her.
Speaking on ‘RTÉ Investigates’, she said: “He took my virginity away from me at nine – it’s sickening because I can never get that back.
“In my eyes, I was dirty, in my body, I was dirty – so how could I expect anyone to treat me any other way but dirty. I feel strong but at the same time I feel weak because I can’t even face normal things, everyday things.”
Burke was recently jailed for seven-and-a-half years for the rape of three girls between 2003 and 2007. He was aged between 14 and 18 at the time, while the girls were all under 10.
Ms Barry told how in 2005 at the age of eight, she had been placed in the Burke family home for respite care, staying there for one weekend every month over the course of the next two years.
She became friendly with another foster child given the pseudonym of ‘Amy’, who had been in the long-term care of the Burke family since the age of six months.
She told how, during one stay, Burke took turns raping both of them, forcing each girl to watch what was happening to the other.
There was a hut concealed behind bushes at the back of the house. “In the hut there was a bed, there was a curtain around the bed, there was a shelf and two windows,” she said. “Myself and Amy in turns had to strip down with nothing only our socks on and while he had obviously done it to Amy before, he called her over and I had to watch what was happening to her,” Rachel told RTÉ.
In an emotional interview, she described the abuse, saying the then-teenage boy had “for four times” alternated the girls during the rape, making them watch each other. She said the situation had made her want to look after Amy and protect her.
Two years later in May 2007, at the age of 11, she plucked up the courage to tell her biological mother what was happening.
“I was in the bath and I just started crying, I felt dirty.” She said she “didn’t put a name on it” because she didn’t know what it was. Her mother had then “crumbled” in front of her.
She was taken to hospital for tests and recalling being on her “hands and knees like a dog for an hour maybe” as she was examined.
Following an investigation, the HSE – who had responsibility for child protection at the time – assessed Rachel’s disclosure as “credible”.
She had also reported that Amy had been raped by Burke, but at the time Amy did not
disclose any abuse. The gardaí sent a file to the DPP but no prosecution followed. But two months after the disclosure, the HSE decided Amy and another young boy being fostered were not to be removed from the foster home, according to documents seen by RTÉ.
The HSE stipulated Burke was not to be left alone with the foster children – and the foster parents agreed to supervise this. However, it emerged in court that Burke continued to have unsupervised access to the children after 2007, even though he had by then moved out of the family home.
Four years later, in October 2011, Amy told a teacher that she had been raped. Her disclosure prompted a new Garda investigation, which revealed that a third young girl had also been raped.
‘Sarah’, again a pseudonym, was placed with the Burkes for foster care in 2000, aged five. She was regularly raped by Burke and also witnessed the rape of Amy.
“It was horrible and she was so small and she was so young,” she told RTÉ. “I always wanted to protect her, but I couldn’t. He was a beast. I was just too frightened of him.”
In a statement, the HSE said it apologised “unreservedly” for the failings in their foster care arranged by their Galway Community Care service between 2005 and 2007.
“While no apology can undo the harm inflicted on them, it is important that the HSE expresses a heartfelt apology at this time,” said the statement.
Tusla has had the relevant files since 2014, it said, adding that the HSE had been in contact with Tusla in order to discuss how best to determine whether this case raises any concerns for HSE delivered services today.
Grainia Long, CEO of the ISPCC, said the authorities now needed to “step back” and analyse the failings of the foster care system, pointing out that Hiqa last year warned 10 areas around the country were ‘not compliant’ when it comes to child protection measures.