Lone parent families in Europe: A variety, of economic and social circumstances

The third wave of the European Community Household Panel Survey (ECHP) show s that 12 per cent of European families were lone parent families in 1996. rune single parents out of ten are women, usually divorced or separated. Th e proportion of lone parents under 30 varies from 3 per cent in Italy to 20 per cent in the United kingdom. Most lone parents are in work, and very of ten occupy a full-time job, but the employment rate ranges from only 10 per cent in Ireland and the United kingdom to 75 per cent in France and Denmar k. Lone-parent families benefit from social transfers more often than other families, and for higher amounts, but poverty is more common than in other households, except in Denmark, Greece and Portugal. The housing circumstan ces of lone-parent families vary widely from country to country. In the sou th of Europe, 25 to 40 per cent are lodging in a larger household, suggesti ng solidarity within the extended families. This paper classifies the natio ns of Europe into five groups in terms of the overall circumstances of lone parent families. Anglo-Saxon countries have the highest proportion of lone parents, with the least labour market participation and lower incomes. In contrast, lone parents in Scandinavian countries are more often at work and no more affected by poverty than outer apes of households.