Staff assaults outnumber youth violence at Oberstown as weapons seizures fall

Ken Foxe

More than 70 assaults have been reported at the country’s main centre for young offenders, with attacks on both staff and other residents.

The Oberstown Children Detention Campus said there had been a total of 38 assaults last year, 33 involving child-on-child violence and five attacks on a staff member.

In the first nine months of this year, that trend has been reversed, according to figures released under FOI.

They show there were 35 attacks in total, 12 involving only children and 23 where a staff member was assaulted.

Oberstown said since the beginning of last year, there had also been 51 weapons seizures, with a drop evident this year.

There were 33 weapons recovered last year, but in the first nine months of this year, the figure was 18.

The North Dublin detention centre reported just seven seizures of drugs, five during 2024 and a further two in the first three-quarters of 2025.

In total, Oberstown said there had been 443 notifiable incidents over the past two years, which are classed in severity from Grade I to Grade III.

However, there were no Grade I events, which include death, imminent death or situations involving evacuation or closure.

The detention centre said there had been five cases that were classified as Grade II.

These are “critical incidents” which include an injury to a child or adult that required emergency care, significant property damage, or escape.

It also covers any case where criminal charges may result, or civil litigation was likely to result.

An explanatory note said: “Incidents which might attract rapid or heightened media interest or be potentially sensitive should also be considered critical incidents.”

There were a total of 438 Grade III reports, which are classified internally as “significant incidents.”

A note said: “Such incidents should not involve the emergency services, should not involve serious injuries and should not involve any serious property damage.

“Non-return from home leave should be treated as Grade III unless incident escalates [and] re-grading is needed.”

Asked about the records, a statement from Oberstown said: “The safety and well-being of our staff and young people is paramount.

Every incident is taken seriously and reviewed thoroughly in line with our established protocols.

“It is important to acknowledge the overall downward trend in incidents across the campus in 2025. Compared to 2024, there has been a reduction in the total number of notifiable incidents, drug seizures and weapon seizures.”

The statement said there were 14,274 occupied “room nights” in 2024 and 10,600 in the first nine months of this year.

It added: “We recognise the impact that any incident can have and remain committed to maintaining a safe and supportive environment.”