Vee-TV
Issues
Lone parents
The
hard facts | Lisa's story | Links
| Organisations
Since the 1960s the
stigma attached to being a lone parent has been eroded. The days when
a pregnant daughter was packed off to another part of the country before
her bump became too obvious, not to return until the child had been born
and put up for adoption, are fortunately long gone.
The hard facts
But being a lone parent
is still a tough path to tread. The typical income of a lone parent is
less than half that of a two-parent household and lone parents have overtaken
pensioners as the poorest group in the UK. Lone parents account for only
8% of the population, but they make up 20% of those in poverty. Fifty
per cent of one-parent families live on gross weekly incomes of less than
£150, compared to 4% of married couples and 9% of cohabiting couples.
And, in 1999, almost three in five lone parents were on Income Support,
and one in four of the remainder were claiming Family Credit.
Although three in
five lone parents are divorced, separated or widowed, those who have never
been married make up the fastest-growing group. But still only one in
seven lone mothers have never lived with the child’s father: in 1998,
79% of births to lone mothers were registered by both parents, and 77%
of these registrations showed that the parents were living at the same
address. It seems that most women still opt for having children in a relationship,
but when it breaks down they are likely to retain custody and to shoulder
the economic burden.
Along with shortage
of money often come poor housing, health problems and debts. For lone
parents who are also studying full-time, student loans may have to be
boosted by borrowing from commercial sources, and two-thirds are unable
to buy the books they need. Three-quarters report that their financial
struggles have adversely affected their studies.
Lisa's
story
It’s obvious
that a supportive family can make all the difference to a lone parent.
Lisa, a 22-year-old lone mother from Essex, told VEE-TV about her own
experiences.
Lisa attended Mary
Hare Grammar School, and while in the sixth form she met Simon, who is
hearing. After finishing school she returned home to study at a local
college, seeing Simon at weekends – but just a month into the first
term she discovered she was pregnant.
Lisa was happy with
Simon and unhappy with her college course, so it wasn’t a hard decision
to move in with Simon and have the baby. They set up home in a housing-association
flat in Newbury, in Berkshire, but Lisa felt she didn’t fit in with
the local mother-and-toddler groups, and eventually she and Simon split
up. Now back with her mother in Hornchurch, Essex, Lisa has plenty of
friends with small children and is planning to start an interior-design
course at the University of East London in September, when Rylan will
be starting school.
Lisa feels some regret
at having become pregnant so young, and wishes she could have gone to
university and had the chance to travel before shouldering the responsibilities
of being a mother. She says she is lucky to have the support of her mother
plus the chance to work sometimes in her mother’s business for extra
cash.
Links
The Baby Registry
www.thebabyregistry.co.uk
Pregnancy and parenting information and reference site for new and expectant
parents, offering factsheets, advice from mums and dads and hundreds of
contacts in the UK.
Childcare Link
www.childcarelink.gov.uk
Government website providing a directory of information about childcare
services throughout England and Scotland.
Directory for
Single Mothers
www.homelesspages.org.uk
Information on hostels, housing projects and advice services for single
mothers.
Health in Focus
www.healthinfocus.co.uk
A comprehensive source for health information with articles on deaf-related
issues plus contacts for support, help and services for single mothers.
NannyJob
www.nannyjob.co.uk
Childcare internet recruitment service allowing parents looking for childcare
to advertise for free.
Patient UK
http://patients.co.uk
A comprehensive A–Z directory of sources of medical support and help.
Includes sections on health issues for mothers and children plus online
consultation services.
Stepfamilies
www.stepfamilies.co.uk
Feature articles and a forum offering help and advice for mothers, mothers-to-be,
new mothers and lone mothers.
UK Parents
www.ukparents.co.uk
Online parenting magazine with features on new products, expert advice
on pregnancy and parenthood, plus bulletin boards, chat rooms, letters
pages, a classified ads and jobs board section, and a pregnancy and kids
section.
Organisations
Gingerbread
Freephone: 0800 018 4318 (Monday to Friday 10am-4pm)
E-mail: advice@gingerbread.org.uk
Website: www.gingerbread.org.uk
Support organisation maintained by and for lone-parent families in England
and Wales. Website offers wide-ranging information about support for lone
parents. Includes a chatroom and an e-mail facility for receiving information
and advice online.
National Council
for One Parent Families
255 Kentish Town Road
London NW5 2LX
Helpline: 0800 018 5026 (Monday to Friday 9.15am to 5.15pm)
E-mail: info@oneparentfamilies.org.uk
Website: www.oneparentfamilies.org.uk
Offers an information service for lone parents, other organisations, local
authorities and the media. Also campaigns and lobbies to change the law
and improve provisions for lone-parent families.
One Parent Families
Scotland
13 Gayfield Square
Edinburgh EH1 3NX
Voice/textphone: 0131 556 3899
Fax: 0131 557 9650
E-mail: opfs@gn.apc.org
Website: www.gn.apc.org/opfs
Provides services for single parents in Scotland. Contact for details
of sitter services, out-of-school care, lone-parent support groups and
access centres. Also offers an information, advice and counselling service
and publishes leaflets, booklets and videos.
Parentline Plus
Helpline: 0808 800 2222 (Monday to Friday 8am–10pm, Saturday
9.30am–5.30pm, Sunday 10am–3pm)
Textphone: 0800 783 6783 (Monday to Friday 9am–5pm)
Website: www.parentlineplus.org.uk
Provides confidential advice and information on a wide range of issues
to anyone caring for children. Also runs parenting courses and an information
service. Website contains information on initiatives to work with local
and central government to increase support for families.
Save the Children
(UK)
17 Grove Lane
London SE5 8RD
Voice: 020 7703 5400
Fax: 020 7703 2278
Website: www.savethechildren.org.uk
Offers support to families who suffer disadvantage and/or discrimination.
Contact for information about day-care services and non-centre-based services
working with families in communities throughout the UK.
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