Parents forced to dig deep for kids’ hobbies

From piano lessons to dance classes, parents here are spending an average of €840 per child on their hobbies, a survey has revealed.

Of course no survey can quantify the emotional trauma invested in supporting these after-school activities, but it did calculate that parents spend around 104 hours a year transporting their children to and from their chosen hobbies.

From budding Messis to trying to find the next Rory Gallagher, sports, drama, dance and music feature strongly in the list of most popular activities, according to the research conduced on behalf of high-street retailer Argos

The poll suggests that Irish kids are quite active — engaging in two or three different activities a week.

Some 250 parents across Ireland, with children aged between 4 and 16, took part in the research.

Football was by far the most popular activity, with 42% of children playing the sport every few days.

Swimming, dancing and athletics also proved to be popular options.

The questionnaire shows parents in Ireland are heavily involved in promoting active lifestyles for children, with the majority encouraging their kids to take up an activity.

Almost 80% of parents said they encouraged their child to try out a hobby that they never got to do as a child.

Laura Dove, occasions and leisure manager with Argos, said children have been encouraged by recent events like the Olympics and the World Cup.

“Irish kids are really inspired by the big sporting events which take place each year, and also by the sports they learn at school. Children are taking up more hobbies as they go through their education, with most found to be doing two or three a week.”

The Top Ten most popular children’s hobbies this year:

-1 Football

-2 Swimming

-3 Dancing

-4 Athletics

-5 Drama

-6 Horse riding

-7 Piano lessons

-8 Guitar lessons

-9 Gymnastics

-10 Rugby