28 October 2011

There was little change in the percentage of one-parent families from 2002 to 2008 across UNECE countries.

Notable decrease was observed in Turkey and Ukraine, whereas in Belgium the percentage increased from 13 to 15.The level higher than ten percent is observed also in the Czech Republic,Ireland and the United Kingdom.

The share of one-parent family households varies considerably across UNECE countries, ranging from 3 to 15 per cent of all private households. A large majority of one-parent families is still headed by the mother.The percentage of one-parent families where the parent is the father ranges between one and two per cent in most countries and this has not changed much in the considered six-year period.

A one-parent family is defined as a household with a lone parent with one or more children.Those families usually emerge as a result of divorce or out-ofunion childbearing.

Source: UNECE Statistical Database