Subtopic: Family Composition

This report analyses the characteristics of people who are cohabiting with a partner.

This report analyses the characteristics of young adults aged between 20 and 34 who live with their parents.

The ONS publishes estimates of families and households using the Labour Force Survey between ten yearly censuses. The LFS has been chosen as the preferred source of estimates on these topics due to its large sample size, long time series and timeliness, and because it provides estimates on a consistent basis for the whole UK. However the LFS is not the only source of data on families and households. This document provides a brief guide to the LFS and to alternative sources of data on this topic.

Presents recent estimates of the number of families by type, people in families by family type and children in families by type. Types of family include married couple families, cohabiting couple families and lone parent families. Tables on household size, household types and people in different household types are also provided. These include estimates of people living alone and multi-family households.

This article examines changes between 1984 and 2007 in the demographic and socio-economic circumstances of British men and women in mid-life. Changing living arrangements in mid-life reflect historical changes in the occurrence and timing of life events such as marriage and parenthood, as well as increased longevity. In order to place mid-life in this wider demographic context, the article first reviews changes over time in kin availability across the adult life course using the British Household Panel Survey (2001) and Understanding Society (2009). The article goes on to use data from the General Household Survey (1984–2007) to document shifts over time in living arrangements for those aged 20–79. In the final part of the article we focus specifically on those aged between 45 and 64 and examine how their characteristics in terms of marital status, educational attainment, activity status and housing tenure have changed over the past quarter century.

Presents recent estimates of the number of families by type, people in families by family type and children in families by type. Types of family include married couple families, cohabiting couple families and lone parent families. Tables on household size, household types and people in different household types are also provided. These include estimates of people living alone, multi-family households and households where members are all unrelated.