Analysis: It was mothers who showed how to turn pennies into positive pathways for their children In Limerick's most disadvantaged estates
In communities where poverty feels inevitable, financial literacy can be the discreet force that changes everything. Today, as inequality deepens and the cost of living rises, understanding how families survive and thrive on the margins is more urgent than ever.
In Limerick's most disadvantaged estates, it was mothers who showed how to turn pennies into positive pathways for their children. Their resilience and resourcefulness challenge stereotypes and offer practical lessons for breaking cycles of deprivation. If social mobility is a priority, the hidden power of a household budget deserves attention.
For many families in the city’s most disadvantaged estates, life was a daily balancing act, stretching a meagre budget to cover food, bills, and day-to-day living. Yet behind these tight budgets were matriarchs whose quiet genius and acumen for financial management helped their children climb out of poverty and into opportunity.
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From RTÉ 2fm, how to manae your finances with Caz Mooney
Limerick has long been a city of contrasts, frequently characterised by a strong division between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots'. According to Pobal's HP Index of Deprivation, the city contains four of the most deprived communities in the entire country. In response to high levels of social problems and exclusion within these blackspots, the Regeneration Programme in Limerick was launched in 2008. It was initially backed by a substantial €3 billion budget which aimed to address crime, poverty and social exclusion through physical, social, and economic development in four highly deprived estates to create safe, sustainable communities.
But the programme was scaled back to just €300 million following a global recession. While intended to improve living conditions, this reduction in investment led to widespread demolition, boarded-up houses and the subsequent displacement of families, which significantly eroded social networks and community spirit. Nearly two decades on from the launch, progress remains slow, with far fewer homes rebuilt than promised, which has left many residents in degraded environments and with deepened feelings of isolation.
The structural challenges are stark within these Regeneration communities. According to the 2022 census, unemployment rates run three times higher than the national average, over half of all households are managed by single parents, and only 6% of adults hold a college degree compared to nearly 38% nationally. These statistics powerfully illustrate the immense effort required by families to navigate the journey out of poverty. Moreover, these figures are compounded by negative media coverage of the estates and political rhetoric of poverty shaming and blame. This combination creates a pervasive environment characterised by limited expectation, social pressure, and a profound daily anxiety about making ends meet.
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From RTÉ Archives, Michael Walsh reports for RTÉ News in 1981 on attempts to renew inner city Limerick, which has suffered from neglect in the past
But such quantitative statistics fail to tell the positive stories of deep resilience and achievement that thrive behind closed doors for some residents. Research was conducted across four of Limerick’s key Regeneration areas (Southill, Ballinacurra Weston, Moyross, and St. Mary’s Park) to capture narratives of success and identify the key markers of support that helped residents disrupt the intergenerational cycle of disadvantage.
The most frequent and significant narrative among participants centred on and attributed their success directly to their mothers. These women were identified as crucial agents who transformed financial scarcity into deliberate strategy, transmitting essential skills that functioned as roadmaps for social class mobility.
In a dozen life-history interviews with people who grew up in these communities and later achieved upward mobility, one theme rang clear: the mother mattered most. These women were actively engineering survival, transforming severely limited budgets into roadmaps for success, rather than merely managing scarcity. They modelled sophisticated financial literacy in its most practical, hands-on form, strategic saving, budgeting, and disciplined planning.
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From RTÉ Archives, Cathy Halloran reports for RTÉ News in 1998 on a major development planned for Limerick city centre's Cornmarket Row
Participants recalled financial feats, such as taking on three concurrent jobs to cover academic expenses or pawning a family heirloom for college costs. This commitment to visible hard work and savings also resulted in small, simple family holidays, contradicting the norms of their community. Crucially, this astute financial management established a predictable, safe home environment that became the essential source of the participants' later resilience.
The participants' resilience was forged through daily routine and purpose, epitomised by the mandate that ‘idleness was never allowed’. The rule 'if you're not going to school, then you work' was unnegotiable in many Limerick households. It wasn't spoken as a threat, but as a fundamental, non-negotiable expectation for success.
This expectation became a deep-rooted mindset, which translated directly into persistence in school and successful careers. Watching their mothers routinely sacrifice immediate, short-term comforts for tangible, long-term gains taught the vital lesson that patience and effort consistently yield rewards. This demonstrates that financial literacy transcends mere mathematics; it is fundamentally about mindset and sustained, goal-directed behaviour.
The rule 'if you're not going to school, then you work' was unnegotiable in many Limerick households.
Considering the severe systemic disadvantages suggested by statistics, these compelling individual life-stories fundamentally challenge the pervasive narrative that poverty is an unchangeable destiny. Their success proves that deeply held family values, especially those rooted in predictable routine and robust financial discipline, can profoundly tilt the scales toward achievement.
But access to formal financial education remains limited in many marginalised communities. That is why the study calls for practical, culturally relevant solutions in the form of community-led financial literacy programmes in schools, fronted by local women who possess these key skills and understand the necessity to make a small budget stretch in a sophisticated manner.
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
