Barnardos children’s charity has launched its new LOST childhood campaign. In Ireland 1 in 7 children are lost to homelessness, to poverty and to neglect – this equates to 6,727 children in Limerick.
The children’s charity, which works with more than 15,000 families annually, wants to engage individuals, other organisations and the Government to tackle this injustice. They proposed a range of solutions that if actioned in the short-term, will change the lives of children in Ireland forever.
Barnardos LOST childhood campaign highlights the sheer terror and panic that follows when a child is lost in a public space, and the reaction of society as they work hard to find that child. But what is society doing about the children lost in plain sight every day, those lost through no fault of their own to homelessness, to poverty, and to neglect?
Barnardos CEO Fergus Finlay said: “We are standing here today because enough is enough. You only need look at the thousands of children living in hotels or in overcrowded accommodation without the space they need to live, play and grow, the thousands more living in poverty, and those who are languishing on waiting lists for essential health services such as speech and therapy and mental health services – to see that children and childhood are not a priority in Ireland. How do we as a country think this is ok?
“No child should worry about whether they will wake up in the same bed tomorrow as they did today. No child should feel unloved or uncared for. Where a child lives or the amount of money that their parents have should not determine a child’s access to health care, pre-school, education, or protection. Yet 1 in 7 children, that’s over 170,000 childhoods and futures, are being written for them through circumstances beyond their control, and because of poor policy making.
“For too long children have not been a priority politically, and childhood itself has not been valued as it should be – as the most important time of a person’s life. We as a society have a responsibility to ensure every child can reach their potential. We invite you to join a community of individuals, parents, local policy makers, charities and organisations to work together to draw a line in the sand and demand change for these children.
“The practical things we are looking for, immediately, are essential public services. The cost of which is less than €250 million, and the absence of which is the reason why so many children are lost. Not the billions that are proposed to be spent on metros and motorways, just the beginnings of an investment into the future of our children.”
To drive the change that is needed to ensure no child is lost and give every child in Ireland a chance to reach their full potential, join Barnardos campaign at www.barnardos.ie/lost
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