There were 1,778 complaints to the Ombudsman for Children's Office (OCO) last year about children's public services.
The OCO's latest annual report says complaints became "more complex" in 2025, with 15% referring to more than one agency.
Of the 1,552 individual complaints, 81% came from parents and 4% from children themselves.
Education (31%), Tusla (20%) and health services (14%) topped the list of concerns from the public, which is in line with figures from the previous year.
15% of education complaints related to primary schools and 10% to secondary schools.
The most complained about issues were Special Educational support, bullying and complaints about management in schools.
There were also complaints about school transport, the Department of Education, the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) and the State Examinations Committee.
Tusla complaints related to children in Special Emergency Arrangements (SEAs), Special Care, residential care, interagency work between services, Education Support Services (TESS), access to interventions and support, as well as concerns from young people about complaint handling.
Those who complained about children's health services cited access to Children and Adult Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
There were also complaints about children who were in hospital beyond medical need and a lack of access to dental care and other HSE funded services.
The OCO also continued to receive complaints about a lack of access to Assessment of Need. In 2025, 2% of complaints concerned Children's Health Ireland (CHI).
The office engaged with more than 2,500 children last year through its rights education workshops, school visits and outreach work around the country.
These included visits to International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) and Direct Provision centres, CAMHS services and centres with unaccompanied children.
3% of complaints to the OCO last year related to IPAS. These included concerns over poor accommodation, the quality of food and complaint handling.
When it came to housing, 6% of complaints related to local authorities and the Department of Housing, mainly around a lack of access to appropriate housing for children with disabilities, the quality of housing, waiting lists and access to emergency accommodation.
2025 saw a commitment from Government to develop a dedicated Child and Family Homelessness Action Plan, to tackle "the unacceptable levels of child and family homelessness".
Support for child defendants in the courts was also introduced last year following work by the OCO with children at Oberstown Children's Detention Campus.
Children were also included in the regulatory framework for homecare support packages which is expected to make a significant difference to those with complex healthcare needs and their families.
The report includes case studies of children like 'Zach', a disabled young boy who worried about losing his SNA who was trained for his needs.
'Rebecca' and 'Paul' aged four and five also feature, after they faced long delays in having mould issues rectified in their Approved Housing Body (AHB) home.
Thirty-four years on from the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child into Irish law, the Ombudsman for Children has called for full incorporation.
Dr Niall Muldoon described Ireland's EU presidency as "a pivotal moment in time for rights across the board".
"...in just two months' time, the State can show it is a true leader in Europe on children's rights, by moving toward the full and direct incorporation of the UNCRC into Irish law.
"This would show that at a time when many are walking away from international commitments, Ireland is walking towards them," he said.
