The study draws on all available waves of the GUI data for two cohorts: the ‘08 cohort, which covers the period from 9 months to 9 years, and the ‘98 cohort, which covers the period from 9 years to 17–18 years.1 Our analysis is based on 6,039 families that participated in all three waves of the ‘98 cohort and 7,507 families that completed all four waves of the ‘08 cohort. The interviews took place between 2007 and 2017, a period of immense economic turmoil in Ireland. A key policy debate has centred on whether it is better to target supports and interventions towards younger rather than older children. The design of the GUI study allows us to consider whether the patterns we observe differ for younger and older children.