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Clear pattern of child poverty

Unacceptable that children continue to grow up without access to a minimum essential standard of living

Letters to the Editor. Illustration: Paul Scott
The Irish Times - Letters to the Editor.
Fri Jun 19 2026 - 06:00 • 2 MIN READ

Sir, – Evidence from the Central Statistics Office’s 2025 Silc (Survey on income and living conditions) data and the MESL (Minimum essential standard of living) 2026 research, as published this week, highlights a clear and concerning pattern. Children in one-parent households continue to face a much higher risk of deprivation and income inadequacy.

The Silc results show that consistent poverty in one-parent households has risen significantly, from 11 per cent to 13.4 per cent for adults and children. This reflects real and growing economic stress and financial constraints on families trying to meet the costs of household everyday essentials.

The MESL 2026 research provides further detail. They show that single-adult households with older children (aged 12 years and over) who depend on social welfare are experiencing the greatest rate of household income shortfall. This is largely driven by the higher costs of raising teenagers, mainly food, clothing, and social inclusion-related costs.

The social protection system recognises that households with older children need more support, providing a higher rate of Child Support Payment for children aged 12 and over.

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There was positive progress for children as this was increased significantly in 2026, by 26 per cent (from €62 to €78 per week). This had a meaningful impact, reducing the weekly gap between income and needs to €45 this year.

This demonstrates how needs-led and evidence-based adjustments to the social protection system can effectively target income inadequacy.

For Budget 2027, two priorities are clear to us at the MESL Research Centre. First, supports for older children must be strengthened to reflect the real costs of adolescence.

Second, targeted measures are needed to address persistent income inadequacy in one-parent households, where shortfalls remain most intense.

Without these changes, many children will continue to grow up without access to a minimum essential standard of living. – Yours, etc,

ROBERT THORNTON

Research manager

MESL Research Centre, SVP,

Dublin 1.