Rise in children living in consistent poverty

RTÉ News​

21 hours ago

The number of children living in consistent poverty rose by 45,107 in 2024 compared to the previous year, according to the Children's Rights Alliance.
Its annual Child Poverty Monitor said the number of children in consistent poverty rose from 4.8% in 2023 to 8.5% in 2024.
It means that there were almost 103,000 children in households experiencing this type of poverty last year.
Consistent poverty is defined as individuals who are both at risk of poverty, meaning they have a low income, and experience enforced deprivation, according to the CSO.
The latest poverty monitor is the fourth by the Children's Rights Alliance that has analysed Government progress and action on the matter.
While it highlights progress like free schoolbooks, hot school meals and free GP care for children under eight, the Children's Rights Alliance said these have come at the expense of "targeted measures and strategic investment" that are critical to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty.
The alliance described the incremental increases in child benefit as "barely enough to buy the bottle of milk and shampoo in a week".
'Extremely difficult'
The CRA CEO Tanya Ward described the cumulative impact of continued rising costs as "a landslide effect" for low income families, meaning the basic necessities such as nutritious food or a warm home have become increasingly difficult.
Rent remains the single biggest pressure point for many families, according to the findings.
The report added that without urgent action to address the current housing crisis, it will be "extremely difficult" for other measures to effectively improve outcomes for children and young people.
The number of children living in emergency accommodation increased by 1,336 between March 2022 and March 2024, it said.
While the report does not focus on 2025, latest figures released almost two weeks ago showed that the number of homeless children had reached an all-time high of 4,775.
Overcrowding is also "a major issue" for children living on the lowest incomes, according to the report, with almost one in four children at risk of poverty growing up in "completely unsuitable" living conditions.
Poor living conditions for children in direct provision, who are at a high risk of consistent poverty, are also highlighted in the report.
However, these children are not counted in the official poverty statistics.
They currently receive a weekly payment of €29.80, which parents have reported is not sufficient for basic needs like food, healthcare, school supplies, books, clothing and footwear needs, extracurricular activities or hobbies, and technology and communication.
The alliance's CEO said the Government did allocate funding for the direct provision payment "tailored to support these children to live a semblance of a normal life".
However, Ms Ward said "despite budget investment two years in a row, there has been no movement at all to implement the payment".
Regarding child protection, the report points out that referrals to Tusla have doubled in a ten-year period and that there has been "a steady increase" of 46% in referrals since 2019.
It notes "continued challenges" in the recruitment and retention of social workers which means that 17%, or 983, children who are in care do not have a designated social worker and one-fifth of all children in care do not have a care plan.
On the issue of early years and education, Ms Ward said this was the area where the most effective action could be taken by the Government in breaking the intergenerational cycle of child poverty.
While the Children's Rights Alliance acknowledged that the Government had taken the first step in addressing wraparound early years support through the development of the programme called Equal Start, it said the programme has not been sufficiently funded and that investment needs to be scaled up in the next budget.