September 15, 2013 - Marriage Foundation

End the couple penalty which encourages couples to ‘pretend to live apart’

Quarter of a million couples pretend to live apart Over 240,000 couples with children are pretending to live apart to claim lone parent benefits Couples with children are up to £7,100 better off if they are not married and pretend to live apart The Marriage Foundation calls for the introduction of an additional child benefit […]

Quarter of a million couples pretend to live apart

Around a quarter of a million of couples are claiming lone parent benefits, while continuing to reap the benefits of a two-parent household. Over 240,000 couples with children are pretending to live apart to claim lone parent benefits Couples with children are up to £7,100 better off if they are not married and pretend to […]

Family breakdown costs £50bn a year

When couples split up, families move from one to two households. Poverty is a common outcome that affects children. Six out of ten lone parents are supported by the state compared to one out of ten couple parents. That's where most of the £50bn is spent.

UK Among highest family breakdown in Europe

Five years ago, the UK had the highest rate of family breakdown in Europe. We're not doing as badly today, but only because of big falls in divorce rates. Alas there's no sign of a similar improvement among cohabitees

Lower Divorce Rates – Higher Lone Parents

Divorce rates have plummeted over the past 3 decades, but the number of lone parents has doubled in the same period. Why?... Because unmarried parents make up only one in five cohabiting parents but are responsible for one half of all family breakdown.

Stability is found in Marriage

Whereas stability is the norm if parents are married (75% stay together), it is the exception if they are not (30% stay together). As a result, among parents of teens who are still together as a couple, nine out of ten are married

Single Most Important Factor

The single most important factor in a child’s healthy development is the stable relationship of the parents. Our groundbreaking research shows that family breakdown is the #1 predictor of teenage mental health problems.

The Marriage Foundation is registered as a charity in England and Wales.

Registered charity number: 1150453

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Day: 15 September 2013

End the couple penalty which encourages couples to ‘pretend to live apart’

Quarter of a million couples pretend to live apart

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