SILC Module on Child Deprivation 2024

Modules are carried out as part of SILC each year to complement the variables permanently collected in the survey. Every three years the SILC survey contains a module on ‘Children’. The figures published in this report relate to the 3-year rolling module under the topic of “Children”, which focuses on child-specific deprivation items collected from the head of households corresponding to children aged greater than zero and less than 16 living in the household at the end of the income reference period (31 December 2023). The is the second round of this module, which was also collected in 2021, see SILC Module on Child Deprivation 2021.

Table 6.1 describes the child-specific deprivation items collected in the 2024 SILC module. Households with at least one child aged greater than zero and less than 16 on 31st December 2023, were asked questions related to these items.

Information on child-specific deprivation was gathered from the household questionnaire respondent, typically a parent of the child/children in the household. In households with more than one child under the age of 16, the deprivation item questions were not generally asked specifically of each child. Taking the question about child deprivation in relation to shoes as an example, a respondent with three children aged less than 16 was asked ‘Your household has three children under the age of 16, does each of these three children have two pairs of properly fitting shoes in good condition that are suitable for daily activities?’ Answer options were

• Yes
• No, because cannot afford
• No, other reason

Where the household questionnaire respondent answered ‘No, because cannot afford’, then the household was classified as being deprived of the item for all children.

Questions related to two of the thirteen child deprivation items (homework and school trips) were asked individually with respect to all school going children aged under 16 in a responding household. If a household had one child deprived (for one of these two items) and another not deprived of the item, then the household was classified as deprived of the item.

In this publication a child is defined as a household member aged greater than zero and less than 16 on 31 December 2023, as child-specific deprivation questions were only collected from households with at least one such household member.

Number of parents in household

Results in this report have been restricted to only include households with one or two parents present in the household.

Child-specific deprivation rates for single-parent households are compared with rates for two-parent households.

Number of children in household

Child-specific deprivation rates for households with one or two children aged greater than zero and under 16 are compared with rates for households with three or more children.

Number of workers in household

Child-specific deprivation rates for households with no working adult are compared with rates for households with one, two, and with three or more working adults.

Highest level of education of parent

In single-parent households the highest level of education achieved by the single-parent was assigned to the household. In two-parent households, the education level of the parent with the highest level of education was assigned to the household. Child-specific deprivation rates in households where the highest level of education achieved by the parent was ‘Upper secondary (leaving certificate or equivalent) or lower’ are compared with households where the highest achieved parent education level was ‘Post-secondary or short cycle tertiary’ and also compared with households where the highest parent education level was ‘Third level degree or above’.

Household disposable income quintiles

To analyse the impact of household income on child deprivation, all SILC households (i.e. households with and households without children) were split into five groups (quintiles) based upon their disposable income, with the 20% of households with the lowest income in the first quintile and the 20% of households with the highest income in the fifth quintile. Child-specific deprivation rates are compared by household disposable income quintile e.g. child-specific deprivation rates of households with children with a disposable income in the first national disposable income quintile are compared with households with children in the other four quintiles.

Country of birth of parent

Child-specific deprivation rates for households without an Irish-born parent are compared with deprivation rates in households with at least one Irish-born parent.

Child-specific deprivation rate

Eurostat (the statistical office of the European Union) computes a Child Specific Material Deprivation rate every three years, using the data collected through the module on children. The children’s module was conducted as part of SILC 2021 and repeated in 2024.

In total, 17 items are used to calculate the child specific material deprivation rate. A child is considered as deprived if they suffer from an enforced lack of at least three items out of the 17 items. The child specific material deprivation indicator is based on the following lists of items:

1) Twelve child specific material deprivation items collected in the three yearly module:

1. Some new (not second-hand) clothes
2. Two pairs of properly fitting shoes (including a pair of all-weather shoes)
3. Fruits and vegetables once a day
4. One meal with meat, chicken or fish (or vegetarian equivalent) at least once a day
5. Books at home suitable for their age
6. Outdoor leisure equipment
7. Indoor games
8. Regular leisure activities
9. Celebrations on special occasions
10. Invite friends round to play or eat from time to time
11. Participate in school trips and school events that cost money
12. Go on holiday away from home at least one week per year

2) Four household variables collected annually:

1. Ability to replace worn-out furniture
2. Payment arrears (on mortgage or rental payments, utility bills, hire purchase instalments or other loan payments)
3. Ability to keep the home adequately warm
4. Have access to a car/van for personal use

3) One material deprivation variable collected annually at individual level for adults in the household:

1. Having internet connection (if at least half of the adults in the household are deprived of this item, a child is considered deprived of the item)

For further methodological information on the SILC survey, please see Background Notes for Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) 2024.