Minister Foley launches new Growing Up in Ireland report on child well-being
Minister for Children, Disability and Equality Norma Foley, has today launched a new Growing Up Ireland report on child well-being.
Growing Up in Ireland is the national study of over 28,500 children and young people which is designed to gain insight into their lives.
The study is now telling the continuing stories of three generations of children in Ireland: those born in 1998, 2008 and 2024.
The Department of Children, Disability and Equality, and the Central Statistics Office (CSO) jointly run the study, which follows the same children over time to see the impact of key transition points in their lives – such as moving from childhood to adolescence, and from adolescence to adulthood.
The study has also provided valuable insights into these children’s physical health, mental health and education.
Minister Foley has today launched a new publication which has distilled the key learnings on child well-being from over 300 papers based on Growing Up in Ireland.
Some of the key findings from the “What we know from Growing Up In Ireland” study (see link below) by researchers in University College Dublin include:
– Bullying and family adversity (such as lower socio-economic status, parental illness and stress) are significant risks to a child’s emotional development and well-being
– Strong relationships with parents and peers, safe local facilities, and structured sports are key protective factors for a child’s emotional development and well-being
– Adolescent girls in the study reported higher levels of anxiety and emotional difficulties, while adolescent boys demonstrate higher levels of anti-social behaviour
– Screen time for children has increased markedly during the study and is associated with lower levels of wellbeing and physical activity.
– Boys generally scored higher in maths at 9 and 13 years, but girls scored higher in literacy levels at 15 years and achieved higher overall Leaving Certificate results.
– Boys were consistently more physically active, while girls engaged in lower levels of physical activity, as did children with chronic illness, disabilities, developmental delays, higher Body Mass Index and those from more disadvantaged backgrounds.
Minister Foley said:
“The Growing Up in Ireland study continues to provide unique insights into three generations of Irish children. It is tracking their unique and personal experience of childhood, adolescence and adulthood in contemporary Ireland. This latest research by UCD into the key learnings from the Growing Up in Ireland data will serve as a useful resource for my Department and other Government departments in devising policies to support and encourage the wellbeing of all children and young people in our country.”
Minister Foley is today attending the 17th Growing Up in Ireland annual research conference in the Gibson Hotel in Dublin.
As part of the day’s schedule, the teams working on Growing Up in Ireland in both the Department of Children, Disability and Equality (DCDE), and the Central Statistics Office (CSO) will brief delegates on the latest updates in the study. This includes the recently completed first wave of interviews with the families of babies born in 2024. These interviews have been carried out when the babies are 9 months old.
Interviews have also recently commenced with young people who were born in 2008 to examine how they are doing now at the age of 17 or 18.
Minister Foley added:
“I’m delighted that my Department, in conjunction with the CSO, has completed the first interviews in relation to babies born in 2024. This is the start of the story of a third generation of children in the Growing Up in Ireland study. Today’s annual conference is a valuable opportunity to hear first-hand from researchers about the new insights that are just emerging from all areas of life experience.”
Delegates will also hear from representatives from Comhairle na nÓg who will share their perspective on the issues of importance to young people in 2025.
The showcase on national research is complemented this year by a keynote lecture from Professor James Hall of the University of Southampton who will share some of his experience in the UK context in a talk entitled, “Mind the gap: Towards a better understanding of how structural inequalities are related to Early Childhood Education and implications for longitudinal research.”
