Life for single-parent families in Australia is harsh

Whichever way the data in the latest annual Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey is sliced and diced, the picture that emerges for single parents is harsh.

They have some of the lowest incomes in Australia and experienced the highest poverty rate. In most years, the poverty rate for children in single-parent families is more than twice the poverty rate for children in couple-parent families.

The poverty rate is also more volatile from one year to the next for single-parent families, creating instability and uncertainty in the lives of single parents and their children.

The HILDA Survey follows the lives of more than 17,000 Australians each year, over the course of their lifetime, and collects information on many aspects of life in Australia including household and family relationships...