It is now believed that up to 43% of children can experience a sleep problem at some stage during their development. Reduced quality of sleep can have important implications for the developing child as it can impair growth, learning and emotional development. It is important for health professionals to understand the significance of sleep and the ways to alleviate problems so that these can be tackled at an early age. By educating people in how to get a good night's sleep we shall hopefully move towards a more happy, healthy and capable child population.