Tallaght West report recommends more supports for disadvantaged children

A study has recommended additional supports for children in disadvantaged areas.

The finding is contained in an evaluation of an early years service, which aimed to support families in Tallaght West whose children may have faced barriers to education and well-being.

The pre-school service was co-ordinated by the Childhood Development Initiative, which supports early intervention and prevention programmes to improve outcomes for children in disadvantaged areas.

CEO Marian Quinn said informal support for parents is hugely beneficial.

"Where parents were engaged in formal parent-education programmes, they benefit from that but they particularly benefit where there's an informal relationship, where they have someone they get to know and trust and who helps them to access supports," she said.