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Thursday 16, July 2009

PRESS RELEASE 

Vulnerable Children Cannot Take More Cuts  

Barnardos Launches its Annual Report 2008

Dublin 16th July, Barnardos today outlined the stark reality facing children and families living in disadvantage in Ireland at the launch of their Annual Review 2008. The children's charity warned against the number of children at an increased risk of poverty due to an environment of budget cuts which continue to reduce the support available to the most vulnerable in society.

Speaking at the launch, Fergus Finlay, Barnardos Chief Executive said, "In the current climate of political decision-making based primarily on creating short term savings for the exchequer, rolling budget cuts and a continuing under-investment in vital areas such as child protection, educational supports, social welfare and family support services will all contribute to stacking up the odds for children who already have incredibly serious challenges to face."

He continued, "From our daily work with children and families across Ireland we have seen first hand the effects of poverty on childhoods and children's development. We know that many children who are born into poverty will grow out of poverty, however, when you add challenges such as a training or education need, speech and language delay, family conflict and poor school readiness, that climb out of the poverty cycle becomes a mountain. Finally, take away the supports that might give children that crucial lift; homework clubs, sufficient social work support, a family support service, school book grants, and the mountain becomes an Everest. Children facing an Everest cannot and should not face more cuts in their supports."

Detailing the various needs and issues of children who attend Barnardos services, the Annual Report shows that of those children who accessed targeted family support services with Barnardos in 2008:

• 46 per cent had a need in the area of family and/or social relationships, for example dealing with family conflict or poor peer relationships.
• 28 per cent of children were assessed as having a physical or psychological health need, for example poor nutrition or speech and language delay.
• 48 per cent of children were assessed as having a behavioural or social participation need, for example poor social skills or aggressive or age inappropriate behaviour.
• 37 per cent of children were assessed as having an education or training need, for example poor school attendance, poor school readiness or low academic achievement."

Barnardos worked with 5665 children and families in 2008, an increase of 6% on the previous year.

"We know that with the right supports, children can overcome huge challenges and create new lives for themselves. At the launch today we will hear the voice of a young teenager who attends one of our services and who has lived through a childhood where parental addiction and neglect was prevalent. She says that for most of her childhood she felt completely alone. When she came to Barnardos she found a place to talk, to be listened to and to meet people who encouraged her to chase her dreams. She is now working towards doing her Leaving Certificate and pursuing a career in nursing. Without support, this young girl feels she would have remained alone and her life would have continued into a downward spiral. Children have a right to a childhood filled with possibility not inevitability. This should be at the heart of all public policy that affects them," concluded Mr. Finlay

Download a copy of the Barnardos Annual Review 2008 (pdf, 1.19MB - published in 2009)
Download a copy of the Barnardos Director's Report 2008 (pdf, 1.81MB - published in 2009)  

To receive a hard copy of the report, please contact our national office on: 01-4530355.

Ends

For further information:
Yolanda Kennedy 01-7080443; 086-3860638
Irene Lawlor 01-7080423; 086-3980441

Editors Notes:

During 2008, Barnardos information services dealt with more than 7,540 face-to-face or telephone enquiries while Barnardos' Training and Resource Service (BTRS) dealt with another 4,866 online enquiries.

Barnardos opened four new projects in 2008 in Knocknaheeny (Cork), Corduff & Mulhuddart (Dublin North), Dublin West and Clonmel.

Barnardos piloted two new services in a number of different projects and locations in Ireland. These were:

o Wizards of Words (WoW), a literacy improvement programme for children in 1st and 2nd class using older volunteers to deliver one-to-one tuition in schools.
o The Friendship Group, a proven model designed for children aged six to nine years who have difficulties making and maintaining friendships.

Financial Highlights 2008:

Barnardos investment in children and families grew by 12% from 2007 to 2008.

In 2008 Barnardos raised a total income of €24.4m (62.7% statutory; 37.3% voluntary), an increase of 12.9% on 2007

Total expenditure amounted to €24.1m, broken down as follows:

 90 cent of every euro raised (excluding retail shops which are profit making) was spent on our work with children and families.
 9 cent of every euro was spent on generating funds.
 1 cent of every euro was spent on governance.

 

 

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