Report released on Thorvaldsens Association Nursery operations from 1974-1979

The committee reached three main conclusions:

1. First, it cannot be confirmed that children who stayed at the nursery from 1974-1979 suffered mistreatment at the institution as defined under Act No. 45/2022.
2. Second, child protection agencies frequently failed to follow proper legal procedures in decisions to place children at the institution.
3. Third, government oversight of how children were treated at the institution was severely limited and failed to meet legal requirements for oversight during this time.

Operations improved from earlier period, but some areas remained deficient

From 1974-1979, a total of 236 children were placed at the Thorvaldsens Association Nursery. No children were placed at the institution after February 1979, when the facility was merged with the Children's Institutional Home (Vistheimili barna) at Dalbraut 12 in Reykjavík during the first half of that year.

The committee found that conditions at the Thorvaldsens Association Nursery, children's living arrangements, child care and parents' visiting opportunities were better during 1974-1979 than in the pre-1967 period described in the earlier Nursery Committee report.

The investigation of 1974-1979 shows that the institution no longer had work practices that generally restricted staff from providing care or otherwise limited their ability to meet individual children's needs.

However, certain aspects of the institution's operations remained inadequate. Night shifts appear to have been understaffed, considering the age and needs of the children at the nursery. There also seems to have been no professional process or diagnosis in place to meet the special needs of children, such as those who were disabled, older, from particularly difficult circumstances, or repeatedly placed. In some cases, children remained at the nursery for extremely long periods.

Children's outcomes examined in detail

The committee also examined the outcomes for the children who were placed at the nursery during this period. The report provides information on how many children were placed in other institutions and/or went into foster care. Additionally, it includes information on mortality and disability rates among the group.

More detailed information on the facts of the cases, the outcomes for the children, and the committee's recommendations can be found in the committee's report.

• Nursery Committee report on Thorvaldsens Association Nursery operations from 1974-1979
• Nursery Committee (1974-1979)