CHILDREN BY CHOICE ASSOCIATION INCORPORATED

Parenting

In Australia, the decision to parent a child is being taken less often, with recent statistical trends showing the pattern of family structures in Australia shifting from couples with children to couples without children.   The birth rate has risen slightly in the past few years to a rate of 1.8 babies per woman.

The median age of mothers has now climbed over 30 and the size of the family unit is declining.  In spite of some shift towards the father assuming more parenting responsibilities, the mother remains the primary child carer in terms of hours reported.

Australia has also seen movement away from the traditional family unit (father, mother, child, child) to more diverse arrangements.  Some may regard this as a negative trend, however research suggests the quality of family relationships is more important than adherence to stereotypical "norms".

Parents face a range of challenges in pursuing the parenting role, including:

• ensuring the health and safety of their child
• acquiring parenting skills, not regarded by many as "coming naturally"
• maintaining healthy relationships with partners and children
• managing situations of family breakdown
• maintaining work and family balance, including childcare arrangements
• financial pressures
• developing adequate support networks
• combating stress and anxiety

Our If you are pregnant : Parenting section provides information on some of these themes, particularly relating to pregnancy and early childhood.  It also contains many links to organisations specialising in parenting and child welfare.

From information obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.