Almost half of parents in Shropshire admit to spending less than an hour-and-a-half a day with their children, blaming the pressures of modern living.
So desperate has the situation become that almost the same number of families in the country are forced to devise a rigid timetable in a bid to spend quality time together, according to a survey carried out by Tamagotchi Familitchi.
The survey shows that 53 per cent of parents from Shropshire do not think their children understand the importance of spending quality time together as a family.
This may be because today’s parents have less time to nurture their children with 74 per cent admitting to working long hours and nearly half, 43 per cent, spending at least four hours carrying out chores.
As a result, 53 per cent of parents are worried that if they don’t spend more time with the family, their children won’t understand the importance of family values.
Three-quarters of mums and dads in Shropshire believe that family time is very important and are worried this may have a negative impact on their children in the future.
The research comes after it was revealed yesterday that a generation of young people is effectively being “raised online” by spending their free time on internet networking sites.
Work carried out by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) suggests many teenagers are spending more than 20 hours a week online.
Mother-of-two Keeley Caudwell, of Bayston Hill, said she sympathised with parents who found it hard to find time to spend with their children.
She said: “I’m lucky because my husband is self-employed and I spend all my time with my children but there’s quite a few mums I speak to who wish they could spend more time with their children but it’s the rising cost of livingÊ- it’s just not viable anymore.
“Everything costs so much for parents and you do not get a great deal from the Government to help so you have to do extra hours.
“I have been in the situation when mine were younger. I had to work and put in extra hours to pay the bills and at those times you do spend less time with your children than you would like.”
By Rebecca Lawrence
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11 Comments
I COULDN’T IMAGINE SPENDING LESS THAN 1/2 HOUR EACH DAY WITH MY KIDS.
THESE PARENTS NEED TO PUT THEIR PRIORITIES IN ORDER.
Alot of companys prefer it if you don’t have familys so if you do work for people like these the pressure is on for you to stay in work. As once said we can easily replace you. I think it is wrong and will always make sure i have time for my family.
How about priority 1 - being able to pay for a home, food and clothing in an ever increasing cost environment. Both my husband and myself work full time on order to be able to afford the basics. We spend as much time as we are able to be with our son - but still have to work to live - no luxuries either. Maybe Lou could prioritise for me - which should we go withouth the food, clothes or the house.
So what’s new? Back in the 1950s and 1960s my parents both worked in order to save to buy their own house, and to buy food, clothes (only when needed!) and pay bills. We saw my father for probably half an hour in the evening - and that was only if he reached home from work before we went to bed. My mother would have 2-3 hours a night as she was there when we got home from school. It’s a fact of life that for the common man to make a living he has to work long hard hours.
Working too much and can’t see your children? Hire an au pair.
In my day if you could not afford it you did not buy it .that went for clothes, car, or house.Yes we all worked long hours to get what was needed and we went with out some of the every day luxury’s. We always found time for our children no matter what. We found that planing was the best way to go,Buy your your house, or save for a good down payment, it only takes a few years if you put your mind to it,then start your family, it will be around six years untill the “kid’s are in school then mother can go back to work and help out with the payments. It is a small price to pay when you look back , you learn to manage with what you have,learn to control your expences to what you can offord. And most of all your children have a good grounding in family life.You only get somthing out if you put somthing in.Remember a child is only around the parents for the first forteen or fifteen years of it’s life . Try it , It works . Every thing comes to thoese that wait, Talk to some of the older people who were around in the war years.
PS I was not one of them . Billy D
Au pair? Is that French for Sky Plus? ;o)
Wonder what the kids get up to the other 23 1/2 hours? Scary thought that!
Helen its not paying food, clothes or the house that’s the problem. Its paying the taxes upon taxes upon taxes that’s the problem. And how much of those taxes then goes towards trying to correct social problems, welfare, teenage pregnancies, crime etc. (Could there be a link with parents only spending 30 min a day with their kids????)
Something must be done! Perhaps our beloved government will rescue us and form a committee to investigate, and then introduce another tax in order to pay for the solution.
I am one of the statistics… I probably spend an hour a day of quality time with my son.
I am a single parent and work full time in order to clothe, feed and keep a roof over our heads. I travel 50 miles a day to get to work, and we don’t have luxuries. My wages cover my bills, childcare fees, clothes and food with little to spare. What is the is the alternative? being stereotyped as a single parent ‘benefit scrounger’?
Can I ever do the right thing??
Jojo you got it wrong - your are only working part time in order to clothe, feed and keep a roof over your head.
you are working full time in order to pay all the taxes.
In reply to Lou’s comment on only seeing her kids half an hour a day:OH MY GOD!!!! And Bill Mills said children are only around till they are 14 or 15: again OH MY GOD!!!
My ” children ” are 19 and 17 and we still spend time together every day; oh and I work !!!