Dependent children usually resident in England and Wales with a parental second address, 2011

Dependent children who shared their time between two different parental addresses were analysed for the usually resident population in England and Wales using 2011 Census data. Analysis includes the age and sex profiles of these children in 2011, as well as their geographical distribution and location of their usual residence and parental second address.

Origin-destination data (Part 1) can be found on the Nomis website.

With an increase in the proportion of the usually resident population aged 16 and over who were divorced in 2011 (9.0% or 4.1 million) compared with 2001 (8.2% or 3.4 million), and an increase in cohabiting couples (who are more likely to separate) it is increasingly likely that dependent children¹ will be sharing their time between two different parental addresses. This analysis looks at dependent children usually resident² in England and Wales with a parental second address³, including those who spend time at the addresses of two different parents who live separately, and those whose parent(s) have two addresses. The age and sex profiles of these children in 2011, as well as their geographical distribution and location of their usual residence and parental second address, are analysed. This was the first time a question on second address had been included in the Census.

In 2011, 3.2% (386,000) of the 12.1 million dependent children who were usually resident in England and Wales had a second address that was another parent or guardian’s. This excluded those where their usual residence was a boarding school. This varied by local authority, with low proportions seen in and around London and other large cities such as Birmingham and Manchester; the lowest proportion was 0.8% in Tower Hamlets (London). This may relate to the higher proportions of the population reporting Asian ethnicity in these areas, reflecting different cultural attitudes towards marriage, divorce and cohabitation. Dependent children usually resident in Ribble Valley local authority (Lancashire) had the highest proportion with a parental second address (5.7%) (see Map 1).

An interactive map for parental second addresses of dependent children accompanies this summary.

Map 1: Percentage of dependent children that have a parental second address, England and Wales, 2011

Figure 1 shows the proportion of dependent children with a parental second address by age. Dependent children aged 10 to 14 had the highest proportion with a parental second address (4.6%); this was followed by age group 5 to 9 with 3.6%. The higher proportion in the 10 to 14 age group compared with younger age groups may relate to the increasing chance of parental separation over time.

The proportion of dependent children with a parental second address within each age group varied by local authority. Ribble Valley (Lancashire) and Tower Hamlets (London) had the highest and lowest proportions of the age group 10 to 14 with a parental second address (8.2% and 0.7% respectively), reflecting the overall proportion of dependent children with a parental second address. For age group 0-4, Chesterfield (Derbyshire) and South Buckinghamshire had the highest and lowest proportions (3.1% and 0.6% respectively)⁴.

Of the dependent children who had a parental second address in 2011, 61% had a second address in the same local authority as their usual residence; 4.0% had a second address outside the UK (Figure 2).

Dependent children usually resident in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly with a parental second address had the highest proportion with a second address in the same local authority (88%); this was followed by the Isle of Wight (84%). These areas are relatively geographically isolated. The lowest level was in Kensington and Chelsea (20%).

Dependent children usually resident in Kensington and Chelsea with a parental second address had the highest proportion with a second address outside the UK (47%); this was followed by City of London and Westminster (38%) (see Map 2). High proportions of dependent children with a second parental address outside the UK may relate to a second address for the same parent or parents, rather than a non-resident parent’s address.

Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster had the highest proportions of all local authorities for residents (adults and children) with second addresses outside the UK (59% and 57% respectively). The lowest total level for residents (adults and children) with second addresses outside the UK was in Lincoln (9.7%).

Map 2: Percentage of dependent children with a parental second address, where the second address is outside the UK, England and Wales, 2011

Notes for dependent children usually resident in England and Wales with a parental second address, 2011

1. Children may be dependent or non-dependent. A dependent child is any person aged 0 to 15 in a household (whether or not in a family) or a person aged 16 to 18 in full-time education and living in a family with his or her parent(s) or grandparent(s). It does not include any people aged 16 to 18 who have a spouse, partner or child living in the household.

2. The usually resident population refers to people who live in the UK for 12 months or more, including those who have been resident for less than 12 months but intend to stay for a total period of 12 months or more. The population base for the 2011 Census was the usually resident population of England and Wales, defined as anyone who, on the night of 27 March 2011, was either (a) resident in England and Wales and who had been resident, or intended to be resident in the UK for a period of 12 months or more, or (b) resident outside the UK but had a permanent England and Wales address and intended to be outside the UK for less than a year.

3. Parental second address was derived from Census questions 5 and 6 for usual residents of England and Wales.

   

4. Data have been merged for Isles of Scilly and Cornwall and also for City of London and Westminster because of small population sizes.