One in 10 parents in rented accommodation can't afford to buy clothes for their children

One in eight single parents unable to afford two pairs of properly fitting shoes for their children, CSO statistics show.

Nearly one in 10 people in rented households cannot afford to buy new clothes for their children, while nearly 8% cannot afford to buy them shoes.

Single parents, meanwhile, face difficulty affording clothes and shoes at a far greater rate than two-parent households, with one in 10 single parents not able to afford their children’s school trips and one in eight unable to afford two pairs of properly fitting shoes for their children.

New statistics from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show 40% of people in rented households cannot afford a one-week holiday for their children, a rate five times higher than households that own their homes.

Karen Kiernan, chief executive of the One Family advocacy group, described the figures as “stark” and said the statistics around not being able to afford shoes were “heartbreaking”.

But she said the Government was aware of the situation facing so many vulnerable families heading into the budget.

“Lower income families will benefit from the once-off payments [announced in the budget],” the charity boss said. “Then they’ll be worse off than they are now. It was tough already, and it’s going to get tougher.

Poverty socially excludes children. Many parents can’t afford for their children to go to a friend’s birthday party even.” 

The statistics are contained in the CSO's Survey on Income and Living Conditions module on child deprivation. Just over one-fifth of households (22.9%) reported at least one deprivation measure.

As a whole, 9.2% of households with children were deprived of two or more “child-specific deprivation items”. These items included clothes, shoes, meals, fruit and vegetables, holidays, books, leisure activities, and school trips.

CSO statistician Gerry Reilly said: “One in four [24.6%] single-parent households were deprived of two or more items, compared with one in 20 [4.8%] two-parent households."

Almost half (47.5%) of single parents cannot afford a one-week holiday, compared to one in 10 (11.8%) two-parent households.

A further 13.3% of single parents cannot afford leisure activities, such as swimming or playing an instrument, for their child, while 8.1% cannot afford leisure equipment, such as a bicycle or roller skates.

Comparing the education level of parents, one in 10 who went to third-level education cannot afford a holiday for their children compared to one in three where the parent’s education was upper secondary school or lower.

Households with no parent born in Ireland had higher child deprivation rates, with 17.5% experiencing two or more deprivation items compared to 7% of households with at least one parent born in Ireland.

Ms Kiernan said her organisation and many others working in this space had urged the Government to target supports to families struggling the most in Budget 2023, but these calls were ignored.

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“Back to school was a nightmare for families, and it hasn’t ended,” she said. “A lot of families we’re working with were devastated they weren’t supported in the budget. They’re finding it hard to understand why even rich people have gotten a €600 energy credit.

“It’s very hurtful to see children excluded because they can’t afford these things. And when families can’t pay their bills, it’ll be the voluntary sector picking up the pieces.”