Labour of love: 'We found out when I was 24 weeks that I was pregnant with my sixth baby'

Raising a large family brings lots of challenges and rewards. Nicole Glennon talks to two mums about their hectic but happy home life

Corrina and Colin Stone who are expecting a baby in October with their children, twins Aoife, and Orla 15, Seamus, 14, Cillian ,10, Cuan 2 Lorcan ,7, and Oisin 4. Photograph Moya Nolan

With falling birth rates globally, the rising costs of raising children, and climate change concerns, it may seem like big families are a thing of the past, but Ireland is bucking the trend.

A 2020 report from Eurofound, a European Commission research agency, found we have the highest rate of large families in the EU. In 2017, 7% of Irish households had three or more children — more than twice the average across the other 28 member states.