• Rosanna Scutella, Paul Smyth
• Brotherhood of St Laurence

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06 December 2005In this report Rosanna Scutella and Paul Smyth describe the condition of Australian children today in six key dimensions of life. Each dimension reflects basic capabilities and opportunities that every child should enjoy, including good physical and mental health, literacy and numeracy, freedom from violence and abuse, and access to an adequate level of economic resources and shelter.


The Social Barometer shows that children from disadvantaged families are more likely to have greater health problems, a higher chance of experiencing mental health problems, experienced homelessness, limited participation in pre school programs, greater problems with literacy, less access to computers, not finished school, experienced unemployment, and a greater risk of experiencing abuse.