Almost 6,500 children in Ireland were carers to a sick family member or friend in 2011 and of these, over 800 were aged four years or under, a new report has shown.

According to the State of the Nation's Children: Ireland 2012, which has just been published by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, in 2011, 6,449 children provided ‘regular unpaid personal help for a friend or family member with a long-term illness, health problem or disability'.

Just over 800 of these were aged four years or under, while 1,035 were aged between five and nine years.

The report reveals that in 2011, there were over 1.1 million children living in Ireland, accounting for one in four of the population. Between 2002 and 2011, the number of children increased by over 13%.

Furthermore, between 2006 and 2011, the number of Traveller children increased by 30%, while the number of foreign national children increased by almost 50%.

According to Minister for Children, Frances Fitzgerald, this growing population ‘poses significant challenges for the government in planning for the future', in areas such as schools and youth services.

Meanwhile, the report noted that the number of children aged between 10 and 17 who said they had never smoked rose from 50% in 1998 to 73% in 2010. The number of children who said they had never had an alcoholic drink rose from 40% in 2002 to 54% in 2010.

However, the report also noted that cigarette smoking is ‘significantly higher among Traveller children' and these children are also ‘more likely to report being drunk at least once in the last 30 days'.

The report revealed that one in four teenagers aged 15-17 report that they have had sex and the number of babies born to teenage girls between 2007 and 2011 fell by 36%.

The report also noted that:
-There has been a ‘significant decrease' in the number of 15-year-olds who report that their parents discuss with them how they are getting on in school
-There has been a ‘significant decrease' in the number of 15-year-olds who report that their parents eat a main meal with them around a table
-Traveller children, immigrant children and children with a disability and/or chronic illness are more likely to report being bullied at school
-In 2011, 16 children aged 10-17 died by suicide
-Twice as many girls as boys present to emergency departments after deliberately self-harming themselves
-In 2011, the most common reason for children being admitted to psychiatric units was for ‘depressive disorders'
-In 2011, almost one in five children were at risk of poverty, while almost one in 10 lived in ‘consistent' poverty.

However, the report did note that most children aged 10-17 are happy with their lives at present and the percentage of children who report that there are good places in their area to spend their time rose from 42% in 2006 to 51% in 2010.

In terms of babies, at least eight in 10 newborns were visited by a public health nurse within 48 hours of their discharge from hospital in 2011, while a similar number had their 7-9-month developmental check on time.

"The increased population figures strengthen the need for a much sharper focus in Ireland on early intervention and early year's services with a view to improving children outcomes and future prospects. Investment in early years can save millions for future generations," Minister Fitzgerald commented.

The report was prepared by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs in association with the Central Statistics Office and the Health Promotion Research Centre at the National University of Ireland, Galway.