Decline in family size:

• Since 1900 the average size of families has declined due to several different factors

• The fertility rate has dropped from a peak of 2.93 children per woman in 1964 to 1.70 in 2018

• This has resulted in an average family size of 2.4 (adults and children) in the UK in 2019- down from nearly 6 in 1900

Reasons for the decrease in family size:

• Increased cost of child-rearing

• Greater geographical mobility of the family

• Changes in gender roles

• Increased contraception

The increased cost of child-rearing:

• The cost of raising children has risen to between £150,000 and £185,000 from birth to 18

• Increased child-centredness and pester power have contributed to this

• Legislation has made education compulsory for 18- children were economic assets but are now economic burdens

• Impact of child-bearing on careers, particularly for women

Greater geographical mobility of the family:

• The early industrial era saw many members of the extended family living together with the core nuclear family

• Internal migration for employment meant families needed to be more mobile to secure employment in their chosen field

• Globalisation has led to the migration of younger families- leaving elderly relatives behind

• The recent rise in multiple-family households and Beanpole families

Changes in gender roles:

• Women’s greater involvement in employment has led to a decline in the fertility rate

• The rise of dual-earner families over the past 40 years as an economic necessity has meant fewer children being born

• Males are more involved in childcare than in previous generations and the movement towards equality in domestic labour has coincided with women’s greater involvement in employment

Increased contraception:

• Greater availability and effectiveness of contraception have given women more control over reproductive rights

• Legislation to legalise abortion and make contraception available on prescription in the 1960s led to a decline in fertility rate

• Increased awareness of sexually transmitted diseases and their impacts have led to greater usage of contraception by males

Impacts of smaller families:

• Less children being born has led to an ageing population and has the potential to reduce the working population in years to come- dependency ratio

• Children are more unique in society and a change towards child-centredness

• Shift in spending on education and children’s services- the baby boom in the early 2000s led to structural problems in education