1.7 Consultation with Young Children

While the Growing Up in Ireland study has frequently consulted with children and

young people in the development of each new phase of data collection, consultations

with children as young as 3 years old have not previously been attempted. The

decision to do so for Cohort 24 reflects actions specified by the recent publication of

the Participation of Children and Young People in Decision-Making Action Plan 2024-

2028 (DCEDIY, 2024a), including “[to] consult with children and young people

appropriately in the development of policy, legislation, research and services” (Action

1.1), and “[to] ensure that consultations are undertaken with a broad range of

children and young people for the Growing Up in Ireland study and similar research

projects so as to inform data collection and policy development” (Action 1.6).

In parallel, the knowledge about appropriate methodologies for effective

consultations with young children has developed substantially compared to the

equivalent period when Cohort 08 were approaching 3 years old in 2010. The

Growing Up in Ireland team in DCEDIY are grateful to colleagues in the Participation

Unit of this Department, and associated colleagues in Hub na nÓg, for the

development of an appropriate methodology to capture the views of very young

children.

Brief outline of methodology10