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By Anita Wadhwani

Tennessee Lookout

How are Tennessee kids doing? It depends to a large extent on which part of the state they grow up in, according to a new report analyzing child well-being in each of the state’s 95 counties.

Along the Mississippi River on Tennessee’s western border, Lake County is home to the highest percentage of children living in poverty.

There are fewer than 1,000 children living in Lake County. Families struggle with high child care costs that can eat up to half of each paycheck. More than 15% of all babies are born too small. And children here are taken from their families and placed into state custody at four times the rate as the rest of the state.

Meanwhile in Pickett County, just across the state line from Kentucky, kids under 18 are the least likely to end up in the juvenile justice system and the county ranks near the bottom in child abuse. But families in Pickett County are also among the least likely to provide health insurance for their kids.

​​The annual County Profiles of Child Well-Being in Tennessee, released Thursday, analyzed 62 indicators that shape a child’s development, including education, health, economic well-being and families.

The report was produced as a tool for local and state elected officials and community groups to “evaluate where they can celebrate success, opportunities for growth and how to direct their focus and funding for the next year,” said Richard Kennedy, executive director of the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth, which compiled the report.

The independent, nonpartisan agency provides regular data-driven reports on the state of Tennessee’s children. Last year, the agency narrowly survived an effort by Gov. Bill Lee to disband it after a prior report on the welfare of Tennessee’s children highlighted alarming problems within the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.

Overall, this year’s report found, nearly 17.8% of Tennessee kids lived in poverty in 2022, a slight dip from the 18.8% poverty levels identified in 2021.

Williamson County, Tennessee’s wealthiest county, had the lowest level of childhood poverty: just under 4%. Lake County had the highest, at 43%.

The report, released Thursday, also noted the state’s juvenile crime rates increased slightly in 2022. Maury County, in rural Middle Tennessee, had the highest rate of juvenile crime, measured as involving 99 in every 1,000 kids. Perry and Picket Counties had they lowest rates. Both counties recorded no juvenile crime.

Childcare costs have climbed rapidly across the state, now accounting for an average of 41% of median take-home pay. In Hardin County, home to 5,400 children, childcare costs are out of reach for many working families, surpassing the county’s median income, the report notes.

The report found the Tennessee counties that ranked at the bottom for child welfare are Lake, Shelby, Davidson, Hardin, Madison, Houston, Haywood, Hardeman, Campbell and Sevier.

At the top: Williamson, Wilson, Moore, Trousdale, Sumner, Weakley, Carroll, Rutherford, Blount and Lawrence.