State of the Nation’s Children Ireland 2006 State of the Nation’s Children Ireland 2006 Office of the Minister for Children Copyright © Minister for Health and Children 2006 Office of the Minister for Children St. Martin’s House Waterloo Road Dublin 4 Tel: +353 (0)1 242 0000 Fax: +353 (0)1 664 1929 E-mail:
[email protected] Web: www.omc.gov.ie Published by The Stationery Office, Dublin ISBN: 0755774779 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing of the copyright holder. For rights of translation or reproduction, applications should be made to the Head of Communications, Office of the Minister for Children, St. Martin’s House, Waterloo Road, Dublin 4, Ireland. FOrewOrd As Minister for Children, it is my great pleasure to publish the first State of the Nation’s Children report. This report fulfils a commitment in the National Children’s Strategy to the publication of a regularly updated statement of key indicators of children’s well-being. As the first such report on children in Ireland, it provides us with a benchmark for the future and gives us a clear picture of the progress we have made and the challenges that lie ahead. The report is an important resource for all those who seek to understand the experience of childhood in Ireland. It covers many different aspects of children’s lives, including their health, behavioural and educational outcomes, their relationships with their parents and their friends, and the services available to and accessed by them.