Political choices 'shape tomorrow's child'

WHILE THE Irish child of the future will have fewer siblings and many careers, and will embrace environmental issues, up to one fifth will still face adversity due to poverty or a lack of basic services, a new study predicts.

Tomorrow's Child, commissioned by Barnardos, tries to predict the lives of future Irish children based on trends and policies.

The report presents key differences between the positive future for most Irish children and those at risk of poverty, which it says is not just a social trend but a political choice.

In the future, children will be mobile and will most likely live in another EU country at some stage, the report finds. They are also expected to be more self-reliant, changing jobs many times until they finish work at aged 70.

They will be drawn to business and creative careers rather than traditional professions like teaching , it is predicted.

Family life will be one of the slowest areas of change. Most children will be born to parents in their 30s living in suburbia and will be either an only child or have only one or two siblings.

However children born to lone parents, to a large family of low income or in a deprived area are likely to have limited educational and job opportunities.

Children at risk of poverty will most likely leave school early with minimal qualifications and low literacy and numeracy skills, the report finds.

The outlook for the health of tomorrow's children is grim as they are predicted to overeat, and to lack exercise.

"Many of tomorrow's children have ample opportunities and increased standards of living, but as a society we must be judged by how we treat those children left behind by the wealth of the Celtic Tiger," Fergus Finlay, chief executive of Barnardos, said.