How are the lives of families with young children changing?

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All accounts of the first five years of life are framed within the context of the family, but what is understood by ‘family’ and the role of public policy in relation to the family has changed fundamentally in the 21st century.

In this review we draw on over 130 sources from the last two decades, including many Nuffield-funded research studies, to address key questions about the changing nature of family life and what that means for the experience of young children in the UK today. We explore how family context and social and economic factors are combining to create a new environment for early childhood that is marked by inequality and insufficiently understood.

Authors

Carey Oppenheim headshot
Carey Oppenheim
Jordan Rehill headshot
Jordan Rehill

Overview


Today’s generation of under-fives is the first in which a majority are spending a large part of their childhoods in formal education and care settings and have parents who are both in paid employment. Compared to previous generations, young children today are more likely to have older parents, fewer siblings and a greater chance of experiencing a variety of family relationships if parents separate and re-partner

However, these changes are experienced unequally across the population. Parental income and level of education play a large part in shaping early childhood experience, and this is exacerbated as the current generation faces an uncertain start in life as a result of COVID-19.

These changes are fundamental to early childhood experience, relating to where children are looked after, by whom, and how they spend their time. The evidence shows that the early years are crucially important in shaping children’s outcomes and therefore it is essential we understand fully what has changed, the inequalities between families and what should be done to enhance the well-being and life chances of young children over and above the confines of early years policy.

Family formation and structure

  • Most children still spend their early childhood in families with married parents (61% in 2019 compared to 71% in 1996) but the proportion of families with cohabitating parents, and ‘blended’ families have increased. Following a steady increase since the 1970s, the proportion of lone-parent families has stabilised over the past two decades at around 22%.
  • On average, people are having children later and fewer of them, but this is linked to mothers’ level of education. Differences in family size by parental education level have widened over time; those with a higher level of formal education are having fewer children at an older age than those with lower levels of formal education.
  • Cohabiting parents are more likely to separate than those who are married, but this is because people in more stable relationships are more likely to get married rather than marriage in itself conferring relationship stability. The income and education level of parents are more important for children’s outcomes than whether parents are lone, married, cohabitating or separated.
  • The quality of relationships between parents and children and the level of conflict is an important factor in children’s outcomes and well-being. The presence of persistent, hostile and unresolved conflict has a detrimental impact on childhood well-being and outcomes regardless of family structure.
  • We know very little about the impact on children of re-partnering, non-resident parents and living in blended families because there is insufficient data collected on separated families and the relationships between children and non-resident parents. This is hindering effective policy making as data collection has not kept pace with the reality of young children’s lives.

Employment and care

  • The employment rate for mothers whose youngest child is two years old increased from 49% in 1996 to 66% in 2018. This means that most children under five will now grow up in a household where both parents work. The employment rate for lone parents has also risen, although it remains one of the lowest of any major EU economy.
  • The number and proportion of young children in formal early childhood education and care has increased steadily and the majority of children under five now spend a large part of their childhoods in such settings. This reflects increases in state-funded care – the number of free entitlement hours for three- and four-year-olds has almost doubled between 2003 and 2019. However, the most disadvantaged families are least likely to take up their state-funded entitlements to early education and childcare, as are children who speak English as an additional language.
  • Mothers still carry out much more childcare than men. Prior to COVID-19, men were only doing half an hour a week more childcare of pre-school children than they were twenty years ago, but the impact of COVID-19 has led to an increase in the amount of time fathers are spending with their young children.

Financial insecurity and the impact of COVID-19

  • 37% of families where the youngest child is under five are living in poverty. Rates of child poverty are higher for children from Black, Asian and ethnic minority groups and for children living in families where there is a disabled adult or child. Almost half (48%) of lone parent families are living in poverty. This is likely to increase with the economic fallout from COVID-19.
  • The combination of job losses, nursery and school closures, and home working is changing how parents spend their time and divide responsibilities for paid work, childcare and housework. Mothers are both more likely to have lost paid work and to be doing more childcare than fathers, but fathers have also increased the amount of time spent on housework and childcare.  
  • A large proportion of children under five will have missed six months of being in an early years setting or reception class. This is already having an impact on children’s learning and development, especially for children from lower income households. The sustainability of the private and voluntary childcare sector is also at risk.

Gaps in the evidence


Many of the gaps in evidence about early childhood and family life reflect the fact that some national, official and longitudinal surveys have not been designed to collect data about certain groups. In the UK, for example, we still do not accurately collect data on separating families or paternal mental health, making comment on trends and patterns extremely difficult. These gaps are important: they suggest that our principal sources of data no longer reflect the reality of modern family life in the UK. As a result, policy, resources and services may not be meeting the needs of young children growing up in different kinds of family.

The main questions highlighted in the review reflect the lack of data and research evidence available. These include:

  • What are the implications of the growth of one-child families?
  • What role do non-resident fathers play in lone and blended families? What measures can support fathers’ involvement in young children’s lives after separation?
  • How do changes in family form and socio-economic factors affect young children’s social and emotional development?
  • We are the implications of the growth of ‘blended families’ for young children’s experiences?
  • What shapes the decision for new mothers to return to work?
  • What would a more integrated experience of education and care look like for families with young children?
  • How does balancing work and care affect parent-child interaction?
  • Will the economic and social consequences of COVID-19 have a transient effect on young children’s experiences and life chances or will we see scarring that impairs their outcomes in later childhood and beyond?

Publication references

The changing face of early childhood in Britain

A series that brings together the research evidence on early childhood in the UK and presents recommendations for policy and practice, as well as priorities for research.

View Series

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