- Read more: The Distributional Impact of Energy Price Increases in Ireland and the Policy Response
New research from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) shows that rising energy prices in 2026 are highly regressive, affecting low-income households relatively more than high-income households. The study also shows that recent government measures have reduced — but not eliminated — the cost pressures facing households
- Read more: The Urban-Rural Divide: What CSO Data Reveals About Life in Ireland
Social Justice Ireland has published a paper titled The Urban-Rural Divide: What CSO Data Reveals About Life in Ireland.
- Read more: Reducing Friction, Promoting Fairness: Behavioural Perspectives on Sludge in Irish Public Services
Sludge – the unnecessary friction that can complicate or delay access to programmes and services – may undermine the fairness and effectiveness of public policies. Drawing on a recently published paper (Lades et al., 2025), this policy paper presents insights from a nationally representative survey (n = 1,591) on how Irish citizens experience and tolerate…
- Read more: The Energy Divide: Linking Local Deprivation to Household Renewable Adoption
deprivation in Ireland. The research findings highlight that the most disadvantaged communities are the least likely to employ renewable technologies. These findings highlight the need for focused actions to ensure Ireland’s energy transition is inclusive and equitable.
- Read more: The long-term impact of investing in early life parenting programmes in Ireland
This paper summarises the results from the Age 14 follow-up of Preparing for Life, a prenatal to age 5 home visiting programme operating in Dublin. The results demonstrate sustained programme effects nearly a decade after the intervention ended. Adolescents in the high-treatment group exhibited significantly higher cognitive skills, superior working memory, fewer attention problems, and…
- Read more: Feminist Climate Justice Report
The Feminist Communities for Climate Justice, a joint project between the National Women’s Council of Ireland and Community Work Ireland, has published a report: Feminist Climate Justice Report. The report was prepared by Dr Fiona Dukelow, Dr Catherine Forde and Edith Busteed from the Department of Applied Social Studies at University College Cork. The report…
- Read more: Poverty, income inequality and living standards in Ireland: Third annual report
The Economic and Social Research Institute have released a new publication: “Poverty, income inequality and living standards in Ireland: Third annual report”. The report is available here.
- Read more: NESC Report: Inequality and Well-Being Frameworks
This report examines well-being frameworks as an approach for identifying and addressing inequalities. “Such frameworks have been increasingly developed since 2008 as a way of moving away from a focus on gross domestic product (GDP) in order to measure a country’s outcomes (e.g. economic, social, environmental).” Read the report here.
- Read more: Inequalities in the Challenges Affecting Children and their Families during COVID-19 with School Closures and Reopenings: A Qualitative Study
This paper seeks to illuminate the policy implications of Covid-19 school closures and reopenings in Ireland through the voices and experiences of households, which reveals inequalities in terms of access to education and within home settings during school closures.[i] Using these insights, this paper identifies strategies and policy recommendations to mitigate inequalities throughout and beyond…
- Read more: Childhood Inequality and Child Policy in Covid Times
This paper addresses the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on children. It is based on desk-based research carried out in the first half of 2021 for a report commissioned by Barnardos. The aim was to assess the various social, economic and political factors shaping the context of policy and provision for children in Ireland now…
