The lower thresholds and increased excitability of dorsal horn neurones in the neonatal rat suggest that inhibitory processing is less efficient in the immature spinal cord. This is unlikely to be explained by an absence of functional GABAergic inhibition as antagonism of GABA_ARs augments neuronal firing in vivo from the first days of life (Bremner et al. 2006). However, it is possible that more subtle deficits in GABAergic signaling exist in the neonate, such as decreased reliability of transmission or greater depression during repetitive stimulation, both of which could influence the relative excitability of the immature spinal cord. To address this issue we examined monosynaptic GABAergic inputs onto superficial dorsal horn neurones using whole cell patch clamp recordings made in spinal cord slices at a range of postnatal ages (P3, P10 and P21). The amplitudes of evoked IPSCs were significantly lower and showed greater variability in younger animals, suggesting a lower fidelity of GABAergic signaling at early postnatal ages. Paired-pulse ratios were similar throughout the postnatal period, while trains of stimuli (1, 5, 10 and 20 Hz) revealed frequency-dependent short-term depression (STD) of IPSCs at all ages. Although the magnitude of STD did not differ between ages, the recovery from depression was significantly slower at immature GABAergic synapses. These properties may affect the integration of synaptic inputs within developing superficial dorsal horn neurones and thus contribute to their larger receptive fields and enhanced afterdischarge.