The assessment and treatment of juvenile sex offenders in Ireland

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a widespread national problem. Evidence indicates that in between one-quarter to one-third of all cases the perpetrator is a juvenile sex offender. In the Republic of Ireland there are only 4 juvenile sex offender treatment programmes staffed by interagency, multidisciplinary teams. These teams have developed rigorous assessment and treatment procedures. The programmes take account of the multifactorial causation of juvenile sexual offending and the need to involve families and a variety of agencies in helping these youngsters develop more productive lives and avoid recidivism. There is a need to develop and evaluate similar programmes in each region of the country.