About the event
Families form the foundation of society, and understanding how they are doing and changing is vital for communities, local economies and policymakers. They are more dynamic than we think, changing individually and collectively over time, with a trend towards later marriage, more cohabitation, later children and more diverse forms. In recent years families have had to navigate the Great Financial Crisis, austerity, structural changes in the housing and labour markets, the pandemic, and now the cost of living crisis.
A “notable hallmark of British families is their greater fragility and complexity compared with families in other Western European countries” according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (Kiernan et al, 2022). Separation and transitions into and out of single parenthood are common (Rabindrakumar et al, 2018), with single parenthood levels much higher than Europe. Unsurprisingly, needs are diverse and many policies often interact with changes at the family level to shape outcomes for children and adults. Understanding how families are doing and changing is vital for policies that cut across government and civil society – but can be complex. Parenting, relationships, money and economic stability, and housing all matter, as do social and cultural norms, race, gendered division of labour, and safe neighbourhoods.
The resources (time and money) and capabilities parents or guardians have for caring and development is hugely varied, and with cuts to public services over the years, families are having to do much more – with ringfenced spending on children’s social services going up (Institute for Government, 2023). Divergent destinies start at an early age, even with the growing focus on investment in early years and parenting. Education, health and economic advantages and disadvantages are transmitted from one generation to the next, with parents’ income and wealth of ever-growing importance in determining the position of children over their lifetime.
This major conference will focus on the long-term challenges faced by families and debate the direction for policy and action. Supported by expert speakers and emerging evidence from Understanding Society, it will focus on four major areas: starting a family; parenting and health; economic constraints and poverty; and housing. Transforming the lives of children depends on understanding contemporary families and how they can be supported (Family Review, 2022). With a new government keen to drive change and promote social mobility, what does life-course and long-term evidence point to for improving the lives of families? How can we better integrate vertical policies, including the expected UK Child Poverty Strategy, with evidence-based programmes and family services to support those most vulnerable or disadvantaged?
Programme
09.30 – 10.00: Registration
10.00 – 10.15: Welcome and introduction
10.15 – 11.00:
Keynote speaker
Rise of economic inequality and the changing nature of parenting | Professor Matthias Doepke, Professor of Economics, London School of Economics and Political Science, and Co-author of Love, Money and Parenting
11.00 – 11.20: Break
11.20 – 12.50:
Parallel discussions* (choice of two topics)
Session 1 – Starting a family
Economic conditions and fertility | Dr Daniël van Wijk, postdoctoral researcher, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute-KNAW/University of Groningen, The Netherlands
Intentions to remain childless – macro-economic uncertainty or personal financial worries? | Dr Bernice Kuang, Research Fellow in Demography, University of Southampton
Similar or different? Fertility amongst immigrants and descendants | Dr Sarah Christison, Research Fellow, Population and Health Research Group, University of St Andrews, working on the Fertility Trends Project
Session 2 – Parenting and health
Parenting, fathers and children’s development | Dr Greta Morando, Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Sheffield and visiting Fellow at UCL and LSE
Parental mental health and children’s development | Dr Aja Murray, Reader, Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh.
Windows of developmental sensitivity to social media | Professor Andrew Przybylski, Professor of Human Behaviour and Technology, Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford
12.50 – 13.45: Lunch
13.45 – 15.15:
Parallel discussions* (choice of two topics)
Session 3 – Economic constraints and poverty
Learning from the pandemic: Can economic support improve relationship quality? | Professor Brienna Perelli-Harris, Professor of Demography, Department of Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton
Children in the welfare system in an era of family change | Professor Susan Harkness, School for Policy Studies, University of Bath
A growing gap in childcare? | Dr Giacomo Vagni, Lecturer, Department of Sociology and Criminology, University of Essex
Session 4 – Housing
Who is at risk of overcrowding – and how does it impact on children’s wellbeing? | Dr Ben Brindle, Researcher, The Migration Observatory, University of Oxford and Dr Sarah Taylor, Deputy Director of Research, Office of the Children’s Commissioner
Will hybrid working generate greater inequalities between families? | Dr David McCollum, Senior Lecturer, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, St Andrews University
Housing inequalities and implications for younger generations | David Sturrock, Senior Research Economist, Institute for Fiscal Studies
15.15 – 15.30: Break
15.30 – 16.30:
Fireside conversation on policy priorities and integration
- Naomi Eisenstadt CB, Chair of NHS Northamptonshire Integrated Care Board and Co-author of Parents, Poverty and the State
- Lord Michael Farmer, House of Lords and Family Hubs Network founder
- Sir David Holmes CBE, Chief Executive Officer, Family Action
- Victoria Benson, Chief Executive Officer, Gingerbread (tbc)
16.30 – 17.30: Drinks reception and networking
