Shortage of crèche facilities and lack of tax relief for childcare are among the biggest concerns facing Irish parents, according to a new survey.
It questioned 360 parents with children under 15 years of age and found that 86 per cent believe that Ireland is a good place to raise children, but that provision of childcare facilities is the biggest challenge facing them.
The survey also found significant concern among parents as their children got older.
Some 37 per cent of parents said they felt particularly challenged by peer pressure on their children to experiment with drugs, safety and crime, bullying, nutritional habits and watching too much television.
"It has become increasingly more difficult for parents to actively participate in their children's lives, whether it be the pressures from work or time needed for commuting. Parents tend to spend less time with their children," according to Ms Corry De Jong, a psychologist and family therapist who worked on the analysis of the survey results.
She said many couples decide that the solution is for women to leave the workplace and raise children full time.
However, this forces fathers to work longer hours, reducing their influence on the children's development.
Ms De Jong said yesterday the ideal situation would be for both parents to balance work outside the home and child-rearing for a complete involvement in family life.
"Unfortunately, the lack of child facilities has made this option nearly impossible as childcare has become too expensive for families to afford, in some cases even exceeding income," she said.
The survey shows that only 39 per cent of families with both parents working, full or part time, use paid childcare.
"The diminishing close relationships with children has had drastic consequences as children reach adolescence and communication between child and parents is nearly non-existent," Ms De Jong said.
Ms De Jong said parents should continue to show love and affection, and praise and encourage their children, but at the same time have boundaries and set rules.
Despite the challenges, 89 per cent of parents felt happy with their children's development.
The study was conducted as part of the Calpol Child Health and Development Programme and the first annual Calpol Parenting Barometer survey.