The recent census figures confirmed that the biggest victims of years of austerity have been our youngest citizens.
The proportion of children in consistent poverty has substantively increased, from 6 per cent to 11.8 per cent. The potential for long-term poverty has also increased: 135,000 childhoods are being marked by deprivation at a crucial period of their development. A 2014 report by Unicef found that Ireland is ranked 37th out of 41 countries in terms of child poverty. Similar international comparisons rank us 32nd out of 41 for food and material deprivation and 30th for responses to the question, "Do most children in Ireland have the opportunity to learn and grow every day?"
These patterns confirm significant intergenerational inequalities in Irish society. Of all vulnerable groups, children experienced the most severe burden during the financial crisis. In addition, the overall burden of debt will be carried by this same generation into their adult lives and those of their children, yet the social transfers to them have declined to a much greater extent than to other groups.
One key area of social transfer is education, but even during the boom years the proportion spent on education relative to GDP was low by international standards (at 4.9 per cent). It only began to increase towards the final years of growth, to 6.4 per cent in 2009. Significantly, investment in the education of children in the early years and in primary school continues to be lower than any other sector of education.
Serious questions
These patterns raise serious questions about values in our society. What is valued, who is valued and whose voice is heard at key points when decisions are being made at national policy level? Historically, we do not have a good record of taking children seriously, of valuing and recognising their key role in shaping who we are and what we will become. We do so in the privacy of the family and in the importance that is placed on community life in Ireland. But publicly, where are the voices of children and young people to be heard? Those who are most vocal in our society get their needs addressed.
This relative invisibility of children and young people in our public sphere mirrors the relative invisibility of women. Just as with children, women have traditionally been valued in the private sphere of the home, yet are noticeably absent from key public and private decision-making bodies. It is no coincidence that the early-years sector, in which mostly women work, was the source of protests two weeks ago because of lack of recognition and status.
Society needs children to sustain the welfare of older generations, and lots of them. One of the greatest challenges in modern western societies is how to support the pensions and welfare of older generations in ageing societies, where there are more over-50s than under-20s. In the long term, lack of investment in children and childhood has negative consequences not only for children in the experience of their childhoods, but also in shaping their future life chances. It also has negative consequences for the quality of life in society as a whole, as the impact will be felt in increased costs, socially and economically, in their lives as adults.
Children’s experience of inequality continues as they grow into adulthood. It translates into poor health, early school leaving, youth unemployment and disconnectedness from the political and economic spheres of Irish life. If you want to tackle health expenditure, you do it by investing in education and in the wellbeing of all children from birth. If you want to reduce criminality, you invest in children’s learning and development, working in tandem with and supporting their families and community.
There is a momentum towards greater recognition of the rights and status of children in Ireland that needs a groundswell of support and awareness at public level. A constitutional amendment recognising the rights of children was passed, and the Child and Family Relationships Bill is progressing. The recognition of early-years education provision is gaining traction through the free preschool year.
Substantive work is also being done at intergovernmental level, co-ordinated by the Department of Children, to strategically plan for children's participation, welfare and wellbeing now and and into the future. This key policy work is attempting to join the dots across government departments in shaping policies that are sustainable and carefully executed. It reflects commitments we made to the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child as far back as 1989.
Policy, however, is not enough. We need effective and real targets for implementation. Political will is paramount, underpinned by a vision and commitment to invest in children that is based on longer-term and sustainable planning. Perhaps more than any other area, this holds true with children and their childhoods, because the gains of investment are only truly visible in the long term. Yet they are profound.
Real benefits
Research by the OECD in 2014 highlights the real benefits that accrue when societies invest in children and their education from early years through to university level. It takes two generations to appreciate the effect in raising overall standards and quality of life in society as a whole.
But it also needs to be embedded in an expectation that all children matter, combined with a concerted effort to reduce inequalities between different groups of children. The Finnish education system, often lauded for its high achievement by international standards, is interesting because it has strategically worked to reduce social class differences in educational outcomes.
Over 30 years, it has positioned itself as a high-equity and high-quality system that prioritises early and individualised intervention by professional teams for all children.
By contrast, Ireland has lower equity in its education system than the OECD average, with a stronger than average relationship between how children do and what social class they come from. The inter-relationship between poverty, social class and education inequality is clear.
In Ireland, increased investment in the provision of free secondary education in the late 1960s began to reap real returns by building the foundations of a highly educated population from the 1990s. But a rising tide does not raise all boats. As the patterns of child poverty indicate, substantial differences between groups of children remain, which are ultimately borne out in poorer education outcomes. Universal quality provision and service is key, because it signals the emphasis on education as a public good, and expectations of high standards for all children as a core social principle.
As we emerge from a difficult period of austerity, the words “taxpayer” and “economy” are repeatedly heard in public debate. Surely if we are to avoid repeating the mindset that contributed to the last economic crisis, we need to shift the focus? At the very least we need to connect economy to society, and taxpayer to citizen. Children are not taxpayers, yet they are a vital pillar in our society’s wellbeing. Good societies invest heavily in creating good childhoods.
This is in the public interest. The consequences of not doing so are real for children and cost more in the long term in their lives as adults. Let’s not squander the hard lessons that have been learned. Let’s put values into the debate. And let’s prioritise children’s wellbeing and welfare as a matter of vital national interest.
Prof Dympna Devine is head of the school of education, UCD
