One in three children say they'd been bullied in school in recent months.
That's according to the latest State of the Nation's Children report, which examined bullying rates in 2018.
The government report also found 15.8 per cent of children were classified as overweight or obese, while more than 24 thousand households with children needed social housing.
James O'Higgins Norman, Director of DCU’s National Anti-Bullying Centre, says keeping communication channels open at home is vital.
"The role of their parent and their family members is most significant, they're least likely to tell a teacher and more like tell a parent.
"What's important here is good communication with your kids, watching to see if their behaviour has changed, keeping open lines of communication and checking in with them all the time to make sure that they are telling you if there is a problem or that you know about as early as possible."
