Track 23

Track 23

Lecturer:

As we have seen, changes in the structure of the family are constantly occurring: extended to nuclear, patrifocal to a more equal footing between the sexes, and dual parenting to single parenting.

However, a recent phenomenon in the UK which is changing the traditional family is the increasing number of adults who continue to live with their parents until their thirties or sometimes even their forties.

The UK has traditionally been a society where offspring leave the family home in their late teens or early twenties to set up their own home and families. But in the last twenty-five years, this has decreased.

Official statistics released by the Office of National Statistics show that today ten per cent of men in their early thirties still live with their parents; this compares with five per cent of women in this age range.

The reasons for this are complex and varied. It cannot be denied that some people are choosing to stay at home. Living with parents can be an easy option; food is provided, heating and electricity are paid for, and rent, if any, is minimal.

However, a third of those surveyed claimed they are living with their parents because it is too difficult to get on the property ladder. House prices in the last few decades have risen dramatically; property is now five times the average annual salary, whereas it was only three times the average annual wage in the 1980.

This fact, coupled with high unemployment amongst young people, makes it virtually impossible for a single person to buy a home or even rent.

The number of students going on to higher education has also been steadily increasing. Many of these students return home after finishing their studies as a result of the student debt they have accumulated.

It can take many years to pay this off, and if the burden of rent or a mortgage is added to that, it can be just too much for a young adults pocket.

However, help is now at hand. The government is tackling some of the problems that cause people to remain with their parents with a new scheme: the Affordable Housing Scheme.

This aims to help people part buy a house or flat by making housing more affordable for first-time buyers, and possibly taking the strain away from elderly parents!