There has been a big increase in the number of one-parent families in Ireland over the last 100 years and research has found that these young people face ‘a consistent pattern of disadvantage'.

The Economic And Social Research Institute (ESRI) has published the first comprehensive analysis of the inequalities faced by children in modern Ireland. This is based on findings from the Growing Up in Ireland study, an ongoing study which has been monitoring the development of almost 20,000 children since 2007.

According to the findings, there have been major changes to the family model in Ireland over the last 100 years, including an increase in one-parent families, a rising incidence of separation and divorce, an increase in co-habitation and an increase in blended families.

However, it also noted that when it comes to children living in one-parent families, there is a consistent pattern of disadvantage, largely due to poorer socio-economic circumstances.

"There is a greater likelihood of welfare dependence, lower maternal education and lower income among one-parent families. Even accounting for differences in family characteristics such as income, maternal education, parent-child conflict and maternal depression, children in one-parent families are at a significant disadvantage in terms of their risk of experiencing socio-emotional and behavioural difficulties," the ESRI said.

It noted that in the area of language development, these skills are strongly linked with the economic and educational resources available to a child at home. In general, the higher the family's income or the higher the level of the mother's education, the more advanced the child's language development tended to be, even at the age of just three.

The researchers found that access to home-based learning activities, reading to young children and visits to the library tended to be much more common among children from advantaged homes.

The social inequalities children experience in early life is then apparent in the skills they bring to primary school. The research found that the language skills, attitudes and dispositions of five-year-olds differed according to their social class background, household income and the education of their mother.

Meanwhile, the research also found that children from the lowest income families were more likely to have a low birth weight and this can lave a long-term impact on growth and development.

In fact, low birth weight children are five times more likely not to meet the developmental thresholds for communications and gross motor skills at the age of nine months. They also tend to have lower scores in maths and reading by the age of nine years.

Social disadvantage also increased the risk of obesity among children. The children of unskilled manual parents were 65% more likely to be obese at the age of three compared to the children of professional parents.

The research also found that:
-Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are significantly less likely to be breastfed
-When it comes to childcare, relative care - often a grandparent - is the most common type of care for infants. Paid, non-relative care, such as a crèche, is more common among more advantaged families
-The introduction of the free pre-school year has extended pre-school access to disadvantaged children who may not have been able to avail of it before. This leveling of access to pre-school care is to be welcomed, the researchers noted.

The results of this research are published in a book, Cherishing All the Children Equally? Ireland 100 Years on From the Rising. It concludes that while there have been major improvements in areas such as health and education over the last 100 years, children's wellbeing in modern Ireland is largely shaped by their parents' circumstances and social position.

"While we have undoubtedly made huge strides in terms of how we think about and treat children in Ireland, the book presents evidence concluding that we have not lived up to the 1916 Proclamation's resolution to cherish all of the children of the nation equally.

"Despite the changing nature of inequality over time, children's future prospects continue to be shaped by family circumstances. Measures existing to help children flourish must be cognisant of the powerful impact of the home environment on child wellbeing and development," commented Prof James Williams of the ESRI, who co-edited the book.

The book can be viewed here