Press Releases

Published date: 11 Mar 2025

We should be outraged that more than one in five children are growing up in poverty in Ireland

Responding to the latest figures on deprivation contained in the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) published today (11.03.25) by the Central Statistics Office, the Children’s Rights Alliance is calling on the Government to set an ambitious child poverty reduction target to drive cross-departmental action in the right direction.   

Tanya Ward, Chief Executive of the Children’s Rights Alliance said; 

“We see from today’s figures that more than one in five children are experiencing enforced deprivation. That is over a quarter of a million 256,698 children, more than the combined populations of Westmeath, Offaly and Clare.

Behind these figures, is one in five children living in a household deprived of basic societal necessities. Families living in toast to get through the weekend, not being able to afford a bottle of Calpol, a lonely 6-year-old not able to attend birthday parties or a frustrated 10 year-old having to quit football because they can’t afford new shoes.”

The SILC data shows: 

• 256,698 children experienced deprivation in 2024:  The number of children experiencing enforced deprivation fell from 21.4% in 2023 to 21.2% in 2024, meaning more than 1 in 5 children in Ireland experienced enforced deprivation.

“It is concerning to see only a marginal decrease from the 2023 figures. The difficult reality the Government now need to face is a third of those living in enforced deprivation are children.  Children in one-parent families are also disproportionately affected, with 2024 figures demonstrating a significantly higher rate for these families compared to the general population (increasing from 41.4 per cent in 2023 to 46.3 per cent in 2024).”

The Children’s Rights Alliance is calling for Budget 2026, to be a budget designed to end child poverty. 

“As it stands, it will take us four generations to break the cycle of poverty and lift the thousands of children, young people and families out of its shadow and onto a level playing field. Today’s figures are a stark reminder that poverty is the lived reality for too many children. We are urging the new Government to build on the important progress made in addressing child poverty and strive to break that cycle in one generation.”

“It will take successive budgets to mend the damage caused by spiralling housing costs, rapid rises in food and a crippling cost of living crisis. Budget 2026 needs to be a Children’s Budget that backs up policy promises with the finances and resources to actually deliver change. We have seen an immediate impact with the rollout of universal measures like free school books and hot school meals, and once-off payments intended to ease the pressure on families. But we cannot fool ourselves into thinking that once-off supports provide more than short-term relief. Families on low incomes including on low pay need increases in payments. The Government needs to invest in its new Equal Start Programme targeting children on low incomes under the of 6 years and the new DEIS Plus Programme.

Breaking the cycle of poverty not only means helping the children of today, it also means building the society for the future”. concluded Tanya Ward. 

  

_ENDS_ 

For media queries contact:   

Robyn Keleghan: [email protected] / 085 800 1275
Gillian Hogan: [email protected]  

  

Notes to Editors:   

• Tanya Ward, Chief Executive of the Children’s Rights Alliance is available for media interviews.   

• Read the Central Statistics Office Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) Enforced Deprivation 2024 here.  

• See data from the OECD on the number of generations it takes for the offspring of a low-income family to reach the average income. 

• Read the Central Statistics Office Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) Enforced Deprivation 2024 here.  

• Note: The data in relation to one parent families refers to one adult with children under the age of 18 in the household composition section of table 3.1 here. 

 

About the Children’s Rights Alliance 
Founded in 1995, the Children’s Rights Alliance unites 150 members working together to make Ireland one of the best places in the world to be a child. Further information is available at: www.childrensrights.ie or on Twitter, @ChildRightsIRL #EndChildPoverty