Lone parents frequently have a sibling or more distant relative living with them or even someone other than a relative. The ONS suggests this is the case because lone parents have a greater need than others for more financial or practical support - such as paying guests or relatives to help bring up the children.Lone mothers tend to be younger than lone fathers, with women tending to be in their early 30s, whereas men are in the early 40s - the age difference explained by the different marital status. In comparison it is now more common for couple families to have one-child families and three and four-child families have become less frequent. Since 1981 one-child families among one-parent families have fallen, while those with three or four children have grown. The growth in single lone fathers is, the ONS comments, "intriguing ... It is entirely possible this is a genuine trend representing a small but growing phenomenon of never-married fathers bringing up dependent children as part of a one- parent family".The number of children per one parent family has also grown, while for couple families this has been the complete reverse.
Now nearly four out of ten lone mothers have never married, and with divorced mothers make up nearly three- quarters of all single mothers. There is also a small but growing proportion of women - one in seven - who have never married or cohabited with anyone.The percentage of widowed fathers has halved since the early 1970s, with divorces making up the largest percentage now. THE NUMBER of lone parents has risen by more than a quarter in five years, while the number of children living with one parent has increased by a third, the Office for National Statistics said yesterday. Estimated figures for 1996 put the number of single parents at 1.6 million compared with 1.23 million in 1990 and the number of dependent children living in one parent families in 1995 is estimated to be 2.7 million, compared with 2 million in 1990. Thirty years ago lone mothers tended to be widows or separated. While most lone parents are women, the ONS, in its latest edition of Population Trends, says there is a steady growth in lone fathers, particularly those who have never married. In 1971 only one in 13 families was headed by a single parent; now it is one in five.
After contracts end, the infrastructure will return to London Underground.The private bidders will be expected to carry out a complete refurbishment of tunnels, with improvements to escalators and signalling systems. They will be paid by London Underground from fare revenues to restore the capital's main arteries. London Underground will continue to run the services and the refurbishment will include new rolling stock.At a late stage, the Treasury sought to give the new, directly elected London Mayor and the assembly more powers over the private operation of Underground lines, but Mr Prescott has ensured contracts will be sealed before the Mayor takes over in 1999, pending a yes vote in May's referendum.However, the Mayor and the assembly will take over responsibility for the London Underground system, which may include fares policy, making the Mayor's role a "real job".. The Deputy Prime Minister will announce that bids will be invited for one, two or three private-sector companies to take over the concession to run the stations, lines and signalling on contracts requiring the investment over 15 years. It marks a victory for Mr Prescott over Treasury demands for a more radical sell-off for the "Tube" system. JOHN Prescott will today unveil plans to allow up to three private companies to invest around pounds 7bn in modernising the Tube system.
