Patricia Carey is the Special Advocate for Survivors of Institutional Abuse. 

The role as Special Advocate for Survivors is to hear and promote the collective interests of Survivors, as expressed by them. Since the establishment of the office, Patrica has engaged with 100s of Survivors living in Ireland and overseas.

The mission of the office is to ensure strong voice for Survivors and Affected Persons, and to ensure that the views of Survivors and Affected Persons are central to the delivery of the Irish State’s response to the legacy of institutional trauma and forced family separation.

The position of Special Advocate for Survivors was established by the Irish Government as part of their Action Plan for Survivors and Former Residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions. Patricia was appointed to the role in March 2024 by the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in Ireland. This role is operationally independent of government.

The Special Advocate’s remit includes Survivors and Affected Persons from across Ireland’s institutional settings including: 

• Industrial School and Reformatory Institutions 
• Magdalene Laundries 
• Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions 
• Those resident in other institutions related to Ireland’s network of mother and baby institutions & forced family separation 
• People who were fostered or Boarded Out as children 
• Those trafficked overseas for the purpose of adoption 
• Those affected by forced family separation 

We encourage and welcome Survivors, Affected Persons and their families to engage with the Special Advocate office, to share your experiences, issues and insights so that so that together we can advocate for change and real action to address the decades of neglect and exclusion for Survivors and Affected Persons and their families.  

You can keep in touch with the Special Advocate team in the following ways: 

• By checking out our website: specialadvocate.ie     
• By Email: [email protected] 
• By Phone: +353 (0)1 511 7660  
• On Facebook

"I always say to survivors today when they say I'm damaged, I say you're not damaged, you're injured. You're injured, you know? And that's the truth of it. We are injured people."

In this episode, we speak with Katie Doyle, a survivor of Ireland’s Industrial Schools and Magdalene Laundries. Taken into institutional care at four years old, Katie has very clear and distinct memories of her 14 years spent in institutions.

Today, she leads the Survivors Integrated Service at the London Irish Centre, supporting survivors across the UK.

A powerful conversation about memory, resilience, and the ongoing fight for justice.

To learn more about the London Irish Centre’s Survivor Integrated Service, visit their website: Survivors Integrated Service - London Irish Centre

"Imagine you're going through life. You have no full identity. And you can't explain who you are. Only the misinformation you have. And you can't confirm it or anything. And you can imagine the thousands that went through life like that. Never finding out who their mother or father were."

In this episode, we speak with Jude Hughes- Dubliner, master tailor, anti‑racism pioneer, and survivor of Ireland’s institutional system. Jude was born in a mother and baby home and spent time in five institutions, Jude went on to build a remarkable life of sport, music, community activism, and decades of campaigning for equality.

A powerful conversation about identity, resilience, and the legacy of one extraordinary man.

"I'll never forget her words. She said, we heard his screams and we did nothing. Them words will never leave me.  Because people knew what was going on there. But no one ever did anything."

In this episode, we speak with James Sugrue, who shares his powerful story of being boarded out as a child in Ireland- separated from his brothers and forced into years of exploitation on a Kerry farm.

After rebuilding his life and becoming a criminal lawyer, James has become a leading advocate for the thousands of boarded out children excluded from State enquiries and redress.

This is a powerful conversation about resilience, justice, and the fight for long overdue recognition.

"Somebody took care of us. Somebody fed us. Somebody must have weighed us. But absolutely nothing. So in a way, it's like as if you never really existed."

In this episode, we speak with Anne Murphy- nurse, midwife, piano teacher, mother, and lifelong volunteer who was born in the Castlepollard Mother and Baby Home in the 1950s.

Anne shares her journey from infancy and time spent in multiple institutions, through her adoption to emigrating to Canada and searching for the truth about her early life. With honesty and warmth, Anne reflects on uncovering her family story and reconnecting after decades abroad.

A powerful conversation about identity, resilience, and the enduring impact of Ireland’s Mother and Baby Home Institutions.

The Voices of Courage podcast is an initiative of the Special Advocate for Survivors.
The podcast hears from Survivors speaking about their history, their stories, the events that shaped their lives as well as their hopes for the future.

The goal of this series is to further amplify the voices of Survivors. We hope it will provide another platform for Survivors to share their own lived experiences, to highlight the issues which are important to them, and to bring further attention to Ireland’s legacy of institutional abuse and forced family separation. 

The first series of the podcast comprises of 4 episodes. Each episode features a conversation with a Survivor telling their story, sharing their experiences and their hopes for the future. 

We would like to thank our four amazing podcast guests for sharing their story with us, the team in TinPot recording studios and the producer Aileen for their contribution to Season One of Voices of Courage.